Introducing: The Art of Rules

Introducing: The Art of Rules

A tool for getting past the anxiety of the Blank Page.When you sit down with a blank piece of paper and can “draw anything,” how does that feel? For me and many others, it’s overwhelming. Where do you start? What should you draw? Is your idea good...
Bus Access from Tokyo

Bus Access from Tokyo

A new bus route opened though our area, making arrival from Tokyo even more convenient and affordable. The bus stops at our local community center, a five minute drive from the studio. From the July 11 retreat forward, we’ll use the bus as our public transport...
Nature Weaving

Nature Weaving

My artistic life continues to evolve. Over the winter, I took up weaving. There is a delicious meditative focus from repetition as you pass threads back and forth. You can’t exactly zone out. The materials require attention to detail and there is problem solving...
Retreat Report: February 2026

Retreat Report: February 2026

The 2026 Art & Nature Retreat series began on a high note when I saw the weather report and decided to switch up the schedule to include more nature. Four people attended – two “repeaters” as we say in Japan, and a mother and daughter who came...
Retreat Report – November 2025

Retreat Report – November 2025

I was delighted to host five creatives – repeaters and new faces – for the latest Art & Nature Retreat. We calmed our minds by drawing woodgrain. The slow calm repetition of lines with the small challenge of working around knots helps to wash away the...
Peaceful Pumpkins

Peaceful Pumpkins

Yayoi Kusama is world-famous for her polka dotted art. Some of her most famous artworks are of polka dotted pumpkins. Did you know that she uses this painting technique to help manage her mental health? The repetition of making the dots to soothe and calm her busy...