United by Creativity The Power of Art in Building Connections

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Embark on a journey of artistic inspiration and community kinship as I recount the week's whirlwind of creative endeavors and the indelible impressions they've left on my heart. It all begins with a toast to my friend Net, whose artistic feats, from a striking sweatshirt design gracing Target's shelves to a powerful mural celebrating Black History Month, have truly kindled my creative flame.

As we delve into the cozy camaraderie of the arts scene, I'll take you through my recent collaborations, including a paint-by-number bonanza with Arts and Stark and the upcoming ventures with Goodwill and the Compass organization, all showcasing the unifying magic of artistic expression.

In the spirit of communal creativity, we shine a spotlight on Elly Dallas, the embroidery virtuoso, and our eagerly anticipated stitch-in event set to weave a tapestry of talent in downtown Canton, Ohio.

Revel in the poignant narratives from our involvement with the Be A Better Me Foundation's Easter festivities and the touching mission of Wishes Can Happen, as we come together to sprinkle a little more joy into the lives of those who need it most.

As spring unfurls its vibrant palette, join me in this celebration of creativity, support, and the shared passions that bind us – reminding all of us why we pick up our paintbrushes and embroidery hoops with such fervor and anticipation.

Net Tesfay- Artist

Arts in Stark Event Coverage- Canton Repository
Arts in Stark Event Coverage - Massillon Independent
Arts in Stark-Facebook Page

Canton Museum of Art Adult Classes with me

Canton Museum of Art - Workshops

Purses with a PurposeProject Event

Be a Better Me Foundation

Wishes Can Happen

Dress at the event by Nooworks-Lisa Congdon design

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(00:30):
editing ability for the podcastto lunchtime.
So, yeah, you'll be receivingthis a little later in the day.
Sorry, I just have been swamped,but I just wanted to do a quick
review on having people in yournetwork support you.

(00:53):
Let's pick the right time.
I even have to pick because IloLoewe's schedule is out there
and today's doodle is clouds.
That is kind of what my mindfeels like it's in the clouds
this week and this is perfect.
So doodling along somebeautiful little clouds here, I

(01:15):
think I'll throw them in somepastels, so I'm wearing pastel
today.
My friend Net I know maybebefore I edit the on the YouTube
page the videos, you see I havemy sweatshirt on that she
designed for Target.
I will put her link in the shownotes Very excited to support

(01:38):
her again along the theme oftoday of taking that network
ability and sharing yourenthusiasm for other artists and
people doing that for you inreturn, even organically.
It's just amazing to have thatsupport and it just warms your

(02:01):
heart and makes you so happy tofind out someone loves something
that you're doing and I amsharing that opportunity in many
ways on my own and again got mycozy little sweatshirt on that
Net had designed and superexcited for her and her journey.

(02:22):
She's a book illustrator andshe did a beautiful mural in a
library in her community andthen for Black History Month she
was one of the amazing artiststhat had product available at
Target and I got to grab asweatshirt.
And just so excited for her andother artists that are doing

(02:47):
things and I see that I have anopportunity to support them and
I try to do that.
I try to share their news orpurchase something that they're
making or share their story orshare their link to follow along
, because they're doingsomething a lot of fun and I

(03:08):
want to be part of that and Iwant to celebrate them and I
want other people to know whatthey're doing and celebrate them
.
It's just that word of mouth.
It's so important and I just Ican think of a million things in
my mind right now that I wantto share with all these people
coming up in the spring and inmy community that are doing some

(03:29):
amazing stuff and then, on theflip side, the organizations
that are supporting me and it'sjust incredible and it's it
really, really is exciting.
It makes the art and creativeaspect of what I'm doing feel
validated and everybody wants tofeel validated.

(03:49):
And gosh, just like I was saying, this week I had an amazing
opportunity to create a one of akind paint by number for our
Arts and Stark organization thatsupports the arts here in Stark
County, and I attended theevent and led people coming in
to pick a color, pick theirfavorite number, grab a brush

(04:11):
and prep that little palette forthem to fill in those spaces
and it was so much fun.
There were tons of people thatwere doing it and I think they
had over I know they had over ahundred attendees and I would
say like 90% of the peoplepainted and it was just in men
and women alike and they weremainly adults.
They had some kids therebecause they were part of the

(04:33):
presentation, but everybody justwas like this brings me back
and this is so much fun or I'mnot that good, and I'm like, no,
you're doing great and it wasjust phenomenal and it just made
everybody who was smiling,everybody painting with smiling.
You cannot paint and not smile,and so the joy that it brings

(04:54):
immediately, the tension that itreleases, people get.
You know I'll worry they're notdoing it in the lines, but then
it melts away and you're justlike I'm filling this in, you
know, and this is meditative andit was so much fun and I had
just a blast doing it.
So I can't thank them enoughfor having me and allowing me to

(05:14):
create a one of a kind designand it was a four foot canvas
and they're gonna finish it.
We didn't get to finish it, sothey have all the paints and the
paint brushes and the key andthey're going to finish it as an
organization and hang that up.
And so it was just amazing.
And I have another one coming upfor Goodwill and the Compass

(05:36):
organization that helps withsexual wellness and actually the
rape crisis center.
They do a lot of work in thecommunity to help empower women,
protect women and really breakvictims.
So that is a Purse projectcoming up where they're

(06:00):
gathering purses filled withpersonal care products and
distributing them in thecommunity and I got to design an
amazing empowering piece forthem and I love that during the
process, you know, I start withthat idea because I would say
almost 100%.
When someone asks for something, they probably don't have a

(06:22):
whole lot of direction on likewhat they want.
They made me know a style orsome colors and the subject is
like vague, they don't know.
So I have to start somewhere.
So I throw a design down and wemove on from there.
And so at the beginning of thewhole process there were some
designs that I was doing andthey're like nope, change this.
I did like this, I went thisdirection and I love all of the

(06:45):
previous ones that landed beforethe final.
So I think I'm gonna make thosestickers and take them, because
other people may feel aconnection with what I was
drawing at the time and therewere reasons behind the way I
was drawing the subject matterthat were very personal to me

(07:05):
and I may find that other peoplehave a connection to those too.
So I love the final piece.
I'm very excited about that andI'll be there April 3rd at our
Civic Center and it's anotherGiant Paint by Number community
project.
We have about three hours,three or four hours, to complete

(07:26):
this one, so I'm pretty sure wecan get this one done, where
the other event was only like anhour hour and a half, so I'm
really excited to see this oneget finished.
But yeah, the offering thecustom paint by numbers has been
phenomenal.
I have a bridal shower comingup at the end of this month and
there's 45 participants, so I'llbe there leading paint by

(07:47):
number for all of the attendeesto experience, and I have some
kiddos painting and it'll be funfor everybody to do that one.
So I'm excited about that.
And again, these organizationsand individuals supporting my
dreams and being able to createamazing pieces that they're

(08:12):
going to work on has beentremendous and our Arts and
Start circling back to them.
They're providing acollaboration opportunity for
nonprofits and artists andthey're offering to help fund a
project.
So there was a big meetingabout a month ago and the
nonprofits and the collaboratorsattended and I had a call

(08:38):
immediately after the meetingfrom one of our local nonprofits
, a major organization withnational ties, and they picked
me.
They wanted to know if I wouldcollaborate with them and I said
yes, I would love to.
So we created a project basedon one of their initiatives
coming up and it is fabulous andI really hope it gets selected

(09:01):
because I can't wait to shareall about that one and what
that's turning into.
So I am ecstatic about that.
And then I was asked to partnerwith the collaborator on a city
project for a nonprofit for thisthing, and I was like what?
This is amazing.

(09:22):
So, even though I'm not themain collaborator because you
can't be a collaborator on morethan one project I am in the
background, on the team toprovide some services and I
would be like over the moon ifthat one got selected.
But on top of that city project, I have been asked to be
involved with the progression ofa huge art initiative downtown

(09:48):
and I was just thrilled andhonored to get to be asked to
help, because it's going to beso exciting and it just makes my
heart burst that I have beenasked to help all of this
awareness happen and shinespotlights on all these amazing

(10:10):
artists and get to see whatthey're doing and celebrate them
, because, by golly, whilethey're out there painting and
creating and sculpting all ofthese public art pieces, I am
going to be right there sharingit, shouting them out.
I mean this community to turninto such an art-centric

(10:31):
location and having all of theseamazing opportunities for all
these artists to shine isincredible.
I am just so excited.
So I'm really, really happythat I get to be a part of all
of these things and I can't waitto shout these people out and
tag them and share them and givethem the awareness that they

(10:55):
deserve.
That's just huge.
Art is so important for yourwhole well-being.
Finding creative outlets turnsinto creative ways to logically
think and business-wise toachieve goals.
It's huge.
In your life, having thoseopportunities and weaving art

(11:18):
and creativity into what you'redoing is vital and it's really,
really great to see there issupport for that and to see it
turn into opportunities forbusinesses.
To back the arts is even moreamazing and it's so important.

(11:40):
I can remember people years agonot considering the arts as
important as other subjects andwanting to take things out of
the Curriculums and I knowthey're still talk, I mean,
about things like that becauseof budgets, and it's frightening
because you have to have thatability to express yourself and

(12:06):
Taking those opportunities awayit it takes away the
individualism of you know yourvoice, and everything doesn't
have to be so segmented out intoProcesses that are identical
for everybody.
You have to look at the personas a whole and give them an

(12:26):
opportunity to be veryIndividualistic in their
approaches to even logical,mathematical, scientific Things.
Giving them new ways to thinkoutside the box is important to
find.
You know answers, and so artsprovides that outlet and gives
you a way to Think of new waysto approach.

(12:51):
You know business issues andmedical issues and and things
that people consider.
You know Blue collar and whitecollar.
You know processes forManufacturing all the way to
medical procedures.
You know there's timings andthings and you learn that with
music and there's ways that youlearn through color, practices

(13:14):
with art and that transfers overto understanding spreadsheets
and businesses and numbers andgraphs and charts and absorbing
the information.
You have to see that.
You have to realize howimportant that is To get your
message across and arts plays ahuge part in that.

(13:35):
So don't take them away.
Support those things becauseit's necessary, it's totally
necessary.
So, supporting these individualartists and the opportunities
that we have to do that is hugeand and that's that's really the
basis of my discussion today isyou know, when you have the
chance to support that artist,do it.

(13:57):
You know, shout them out, sharetheir.
You know processes, their ebbsand flows, people deciding.
You know they have to pivot andreadjust and change direction.
And businesses.
You know movement, theirrelocations, and you know

(14:17):
changes in those things.
It's it's it's still an art,it's still a form of expression
and so it's really important to,you know, support those people
when they make those decisionsand have some grace and
understanding.
And so I'm trying to think therewere some other things at the
beginning of the program that Iwas thinking of that I wanted to

(14:37):
share.
There's a lot of things that Ican't share that are coming up.
They're not public knowledgeyet, and that's okay, and I'm
still very excited about themand I will share in due time.
But yeah, there's a lot ofawesome projects that are going
on and never expanding outsideof my community.
I'm involved with some thingsdown near our birth homeplates,

(15:00):
our childhood hometowns, and Iam really excited about those
too, because they're so uniqueand creating awareness through
art with what they're doing isso exciting.
So I'm really excited aboutbeing able to do that and the
opportunities are there forcreativity and for artists.

(15:23):
And when I get to start teachingnext month with the Canton
Museum of Art, I will beinstructing a six week class for
adults and young adults becauseit starts at like 13 or 14, I
believe on augmented reality anddigital illustration.
So I'm very excited.
If you haven't seen that class,you can sign up.

(15:44):
You just have to have iPad andProcreate and then I will guide
you on basics on how to usethose programs.
And then we're going to jumpinto Art of Vive and augmented
reality and then talking aboutusing your art in a digital
format and then what you can dowith that.
And I have two workshops, onefor children and one for adults,

(16:05):
and that is taking traditionalwork.
So we're going to paint apicture and we're going to take
that and we're going to turn itdigital and then we're going to
use augmented reality to make itan immersive experience.
So I'm very excited about thatworkshop too.
And again, you will need tohave an iPad and Procreate and
the rest we will walk throughand how to use it and what you

(16:27):
need and what to do.
So I'm very, very grateful forthat chance to have that program
with our amazing museum, and Iwill announce here that I will
be having an exhibit at themuseum that I am beyond thrilled
to show and I'm very hard atwork on the planning stages

(16:50):
right now and I want it to besomething that you can walk
through and experience augmentedreality and that will be
happening in May.
There's going to be a freefamily fund day for the
announcement of that whole daywith immersive experiences.
And there is an amazing artist,jenny Ruffner, whose exhibit

(17:13):
will be on the main floor of themuseum and it's also augmented
reality and she's based out ofSeattle.
How ironic is that.
So I am very excited that mystuff will go along with that
theme and I'm right here inStarr County.
So it's thrilling to, oh mygosh, have an exhibit at our

(17:37):
museum.
I mean, they get 45,000visitors a year and I am just
beyond honored that I get tohave a piece there and that's
why I want to make it asspectacular as I can and
memorable as I can and drawpeople into experiencing art in
a totally new way.

(17:57):
I'm very, very excited aboutthat.
And then my daughter's bestfriend from school, ellie Dallas
.
She is coming into Ohio fromLos Angeles, california, for a
month in April and I amorganizing an afternoon in April
, on the 21st, to do a stitch inwith her.

(18:20):
She does freehand embroideryand teaches that and does these
classes where you can make thislittle drawing of whatever you
like and then shows you how todo an embroidery piece for that
that you can frame, you can puton a sweater or a blanket.
It's just.
She does pictures.
They're awesome.
She also does zines and sothat's another thing that she

(18:41):
does all over the country.
But because she's gonna be herefor a month and I love her to
death because she was one of mydaughter's, you know, dearest
friend, even our granddaughteris named after Ms Ellie, so I
was thrilled to organize anopportunity.
So we are planning thatdowntown Canton.

(19:03):
It'll be from one to four inApril, on the 21st that's a
Sunday and I will be announcingthe availability of 18 to 20
spots that will be reserved.
We'll have some light snacksand announce the location and
everything here coming up andyou can sign up to attend.

(19:23):
There's a, there'll be a smallfee.
We'll have everything provided.
So it'll be a lot of fun andit'll be great experience and
I'm really happy to offer thatexperience with Ellie while
she's here.
So, yeah, again, another way tosupport an artist and the arts
and creativity and just gettingpeople together and doing

(19:46):
something phenomenal.
So it's just been great to comeup with new ways to bring
people into experiencing art andI'm going to continue to do
that and I love the support thatI get from my community when I
come up with those great ideas.
They seem to embrace them.
This weekend I'll be facepainting with be a better me

(20:11):
foundation at the kids Easteregg hunt on Centennial Plaza in
the morning, so that'll be a lotof fun.
I'm doing that with a group ofgals that asked me to help
volunteer with them and I'm like, yes, I'll do that.
So I will be their faithpainting and then be helping our
local wish organization.
Wishes can happen and they aregranting a wish for a child that

(20:39):
is not doing very well and he'sfive, and we are trying to meet
them and we are trying to makethese last few days amazingly
memorable for him and his family.
And creating those memories isvery difficult when you're
dealing with such lifethreatening illnesses and I am

(21:01):
honored to be a part of doingthat.
On Sunday we are celebratinghis birthday.
So yeah, I want to put moreinformation about that
organization because I help themall throughout the year.
But by nine to five we go andand do volunteering for the
radio wish that's on in Augustfor 36 hours straight every year

(21:25):
with our colleagues we bringthem in to take the donations
that come by phone, drivethrough, walk up etc.
So but throughout the year I amvery close with battle and
Sweeney.
She is their PR director andshe leans on me to do quite a
bit and I'm always happy to helpand my husband is too, so he's

(21:47):
helping too with this and someother local organizations are
also helping and it's yeah great.
I'll be painting faces for thebirthday party along with
Crystal Poland from Polanddesigns, right down the street
here in Plain Township.
She's an interior designer.
Last year they created thisamazing playhouse that was

(22:09):
auctioned off with tickets thatyou would buy at the Wishathon,
and a wish child actuallyreceived that beautiful two
story playhouse and they hadfive or four siblings or five
children total and just aperfect family to get that
beautiful playhouse, beautifulplayhouse.
It was valued at $20,000.

(22:31):
It was completely built anddonated by Toland Designs Again
a creative, amazing companydoing something like that, all
the kindness of their heart,because they wanted to see how
that creative work could helpand it did.
It helped raise so much, somuch money.

(22:52):
So it is spring around here.
If you can hear my dogs barkingat the poor little groundhogs
outside, you know that's gonnahappen quite a bit.
So again, just wanted to sharehow your word of mouth, your
shares, your likes, your supportfor artists, how impactful that

(23:15):
is, and I am really excitedabout sharing some of my friends
work that's coming up in theircommunities and how it is making
a difference and changingperspective on how creativity
can be looked at in new andexciting ways.

(23:35):
So I hope you have a beautifulSt Patrick's Day weekend and
thank you for joining me, eventhough it's late in the day for
my usual, but I have beenblissfully busy and I still
wanted to make time to say hi.
So take care, have a greatweekend, happy Friday again, and

(24:00):
you are beautifully made.
Don't forget that.
Thanks so much.
Bye.