“CONFESS!” a deep voice booms from inside a large wooden box. Those grouped around it look nervous. They await their turn. A minute later, a young man slowly exits the box through one of two doors. “How was it?” I ask. With a slightly dazed look on his face, he

“Childhood represents the most precious, vulnerable, and innocent time of our lives. As childhood passes, it leaves behind a wardrobe of “soft shells”, the only physical evidence of our small self”. – Regan Scheiber Scheiber, a young photographer I met in Seattle, creates works of art that capture that sense

There are pivotal moments in your life when you know “everything will change”. A settling of the mind occurs, a moment of clarity. Instinctively, you know this is the direction to go. No hesitation. GO! I have had such a moment recently. Most of my creative energy and time has

Drawing with charcoal satisfies me. I can work aggressively with my hands, get messy, and make progress quickly. Charcoal is a deceptively simple medium. With this simple black stick you can create almost any texture and mood, from flowing and sensual to stark and dramatic. Charcoal is great for beginners,

Having recently moved back to my home state of Minnesota, I had the desire to take some drawing classes to get back into the swing of things. The Duluth Art Institute offers some good classes open to the public; I chose their Life Drawing intensive, three evenings of drawing nude bodies.

Albrecht Dürer (1471-1528) Considered the finest German Renaissance artist, Albrecht Dürer was a painter, printmaker, draughtsman and art theorist. Artists across Europe admired and copied Dürer’s innovative and powerful prints, ranging from religious and mythological scenes to maps and exotic animals. Dürer was exceptionally learned, and the only Northern artist who

Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) Okay, everyone has heard of Leonardo da Vinci and agrees that he was a genius on many levels. His technical skill as an artist is self-evident. Because of his universal popularity, I won’t go into too much detail about his life, only touching on parts that I

Francisco Goya (1746-1828) As far as classical art, the first painting I remember being moved by was by Spanish artist Francisco Goya. I was thumbing through a book of paintings and came upon a page I could not turn away from. I was a child at the time and didn’t have any idea who

Edward Gorey (1925-2000) The earliest memory of an artist that captured my imagination and touched on my dark sense of humor was Edward Gorey. I remember as a child seeing his animated opening of PBS “Mystery!” and was hooked (see video below). An American artist and author, Gorey is known for his

I find the idea of inspiration and its sources fascinating. Where we draw inspiration from is very personal, unique to each individual’s life experiences and philosophy. Sometimes we are unaware of our muse and her source. I feel I am at a point in my life where I have established