In the last few months I traveled halfway around the world. The trip was like a rock dropped in a lake, and I'm flowing out in the ripples. Opportunities to share the story of Sanctuary of Hope and Pamba Toto abound. I'm swimming hard to keep up. Amidst it all, my children, home on summer break…Read more Painting and Listening
Life in Colorado
Backyard Boutique
A couple days ago, my friends and I created a backyard fairyland of texture, color and creativity. For me, the most magic moment of the event illuminates a path of perseverance. A friend stopped by and perused the offerings, bought a couple items, and left. But just a little while later, she returned. With tears in her…Read more Backyard Boutique
Art: Mushrooms & Dialogue
After three years of painting almost every day, I'm slowly finding a better flow in my work, feeling less desperate about killing every piece I start. I've developed a fuller body of work. I still have so far to go, areas where I just can't translate the image I see in my heart onto paper,…Read more Art: Mushrooms & Dialogue
Spring Surely Comes
Winter and spring scuffle for dominance this year in Colorado. Spirea yellow and crab apple pink persevere against steel gray sky. A few days ago, on May 2, snow-bound foothills yielded to patches of white clinging to city shadows. Frozen and formidable, Pikes Peak still anchors winter's battlefront. I will never forget the latest snowfall of…Read more Spring Surely Comes
Failure, Rejection, and Passion
Failure: When you work on a piece for weeks, wrestling the paint and your vision, and they simply refuse to dance together. And you reach the desolate conclusion that it's dead for good, and you rip it in half. It's not a violent gesture, simply an acknowledgment of its state of being. And you feel like you'll never…Read more Failure, Rejection, and Passion
Language of the Soul – Chihera’s Music
As a visual artist, I don't know a lot about the technicalities of music; but I do recognize the language of emotion and soul. And, if joy can shape-shift into musical notes, the nimble fingers of Chihera band members know how to conjure it. I first discovered Chihera on a golden late summer evening last…Read more Language of the Soul – Chihera’s Music
Dreams in Her Eyes
Funny how she is always thanking me for spending time with her. I've out-lived her by some three decades, and my greatest hope as I mentor her is to impart courage to keep seeking, to keep pressing into the unique gifts she holds in her heart. In some ways, I am motivated by a debt. Once,…Read more Dreams in Her Eyes
Hope In Fearful Times
Flags fly at half-mast in my lifelong hometown, Colorado Springs after two mass shootings in a month. I drive almost every day through the intersection where my family almost stumbled into a late October shooting; and yesterday I forced myself to return to a shopping area we usually frequent, ravaged less than a week ago by another shooting. And…Read more Hope In Fearful Times
Outdoor market – selling art
I paint my heart, so being present with my art and a real-live-someone-else at the same time often feels a little too real and raw, a little too exposed. So, I set up my tent in the morning for last weekend's holiday market at Sincerely Danielle Shunk (SDS) with a great deal of anxiety. Then, amidst strangers, family and…Read more Outdoor market – selling art
Pamba Toto and original artwork at holiday market
Fall in Colorado this year is simply stunning. Trees are usually bare by early November, but this year they are still lifting vibrant arms to the sky. I'm looking forward to celebrating one of the most beautiful falls in my life, as a Colorado native, this coming Saturday from 10 am - 2 pm at an outdoor…Read more Pamba Toto and original artwork at holiday market
Colleen Briggs Images & Writing 