S12 E03: Artist's Roundtable: Roots and Branches

Artistic expression and the creative process profoundly shape our sense of self, culture, and belonging. In our first roundtable of season 12, author Rachel Kang, visual artist Corey Frey and podcast host Stephen Roach to explore the transformative relationship between between art and identity.

Drawing from their own unique journeys with the written word and visual art, we discuss how these forms become powerful conduits for personal and collective narratives.

Rachel Kang is an author, poet and founder of The Fallow House online creative community. A mixed woman of African American, Native American (Ramapough Lenape Nation), Irish, and Dutch descent, she is a graduate of Alliance College with a Bachelor of Arts in English with Creative Writing and a minor in Bible.

You may recall our previous episode with Rachel on her book, Let There Be Art.

Corey Frey s a visual artist, poet and musician. He and his wife Christy are the founders of The Well Collaborative, a community in Frederick Maryland, dedicated to wonder, hospitality and creativity. Corey works as the Exhibitions Manager at The Delaplaine Arts Center in Frederick’s downtown area. He is also the co-hosts of the Makers and Mystics podcast’s creative collective book clubs.

Join us as we explore the intricate tapestry of human identity and gain fresh insights into understanding the transformative relationship between art and identity.

S10 BONUS: The Welcome Wagon

The Welcome Wagon is a musical duo comprised of married couple, Vito and Monique Aiuto. heir musical style is steeped in sacred song traditions presented with minimalist Alt-Folk sensibilities.

Their musical journey began with Asthmatic Kitty Records in 2008 with the debut album, Welcome To The Welcome Wagon produced by Sufjan Stevens.

In this bonus episode, Vito and Monique share with me about the creative process behind the making of their latest release, Esther.

*Patrons of the podcast can enjoy an additional interview segment with The Welcome Wagon on balancing art and family.

S10 E06: The Poetics of Restoration with Malcolm Guite

Malcolm Guite is an English poet, academic and priest in the Church of England. He is a fellow of Girton College in the University of Cambridge and has published widely in the field of theology and literature.

His research interests include the intersection of religion and the arts and the examination of the works of J.R.R. Tolkein, C.S. Lewis and Samuel Taylor Coleridge.

In this episode Malcolm and I discuss what I’ve termed as the poetics of restoration and how poetry and literature hold keys to understanding and even bridging the gaps between tradition and originality.

Patrons of the podcast can enjoy three additional interview segments with Malcolm, one on the moral imagination (which members of our creative collective will recall from discussions in our last book club.) also Malcolm’s thoughts on imagination as empathy, and practices to can we establish to achieve longevity for the artist and writer.

Bright Wings Poetry Contest!

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Summer '21 Series E04: Roundtable Part 2: Memes, Propaganda & Art

Have you ever wondered what distinguishes art from non-art? What are the distinctions and who gets to decide? What makes something a work of art? Is it the result of a conscious act? Does it require skill and originality?

What about memes and propaganda? Can these be considered works of art as well? These are some of the questions we discuss on today’s show.

This episode is Part Two of our round table discussions with author/illustrator Vesper Stamper, visual artist and designer Brandon Willett and guest host, singer/songwriter, John Mark McMillan.

S8 E14: On Significance & Contribution with Stephen Roach

We may not care to be famous or even desire to make art as a full time vocation, but we each carry a need for our work to matter. We want to know that what means something to us may also mean something to others or that what we give our time, attention and resources to may serve to beautify or to better the lives of those around us.

In this episode, I discuss what it means to make a significant contribution through our creative work. I invite the listener to reframe the narratives we believe about ourselves and our art.

What if our art isn’t about us? What if we learned to care less about what we have to lose and more about what we have to give?

In my work as a creative coach, I’ve encountered many artists who trip over concerns about self-promotion or what others may think about their intentions. But what if rather than being concerned over self-promotion or of having selfish motivations, we were more concerned over the loss of not offering the world our creative gifts?

This episode explores these concerns and offers a new way of seeing our relationship to our art.

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Photo Credit: Enowen Photography

S7 E14: The Path Became A Ghost with A Boy & His Kite

A Boy & His Kite is the music project by Colorado singer-songwriter and producer, Dave Wilton. In this episode, Stephen talks with Dave about the silence of God, expressing joy and grief through art, and the creative process behind his latest release, The Path Became A Ghost.

S6 E7: Rhythms of Renewal with Rebekah Lyons

Rebekah Lyons is a national speaker and bestselling author of You Are Free: Be Who You Already Are and Freefall to Fly: A Breathtaking Journey Toward a Life of Meaning. Rebekah has been described as an old soul with a contemporary, honest voice, revealing her own battles to overcome anxiety and depression— Her work has been featured on Good Morning America, CNN, Huffington Post, Publisher’s Weekly, and more.

In this episode, Stephen talks with Rebekah about her latest book titled, Rhythms of Renewal: Trading Stress and Anxiety for a Life of Peace and Purpose. Through transparent personal stories and in-depth research, Rhythms of Renewal invites the reader to establish daily habits of creating and sustaining emotional, relational and spiritual health. Rhythms of Renewal offers four mindful rhythms of rest, restore, connect and create.

Many artists and creatives wrestle with stress and anxiety in their personal lives and in the creative processes. The wisdom Rebekah lives on the pages of her book offers not only a sense of hope but a practical pathway to get there.

S6 E2: Wonder & Light with Lauren Midgley

Lauren Midgley is a conceptual fine art photographer based in Oklahoma. Her photography stretches beyond the historical use of the camera and invites the viewer into a world of surrealism and visual storytelling. In a world saturated with digital imagery, Lauren employs illustrative, advanced digital manipulation to paint virtual narratives that speak to the heart of our collective human experience.

In this episode, Stephen and Lauren discuss her aims and motivations as an artist as well as the inception behind several specific portraits. To make it easier to you to follow along (with the visual nature of our discussion), we have posted the images mentioned in this episode on Instagram @makersandmystics.

This episode is sponsored by Ekstasis Magazine.

Music is provided by Paper Lights and C’est Lis.

S5 E11: Sleeping At Last

Sleeping At Last is the moniker of Chicago-based singer-songwriter, producer and composer, Ryan O’Neal. Ryan’s music has been featured on popular television shows like Grey’s Anatomy, Criminal Minds and The Vampire Diaries and has appeared in Films such as The Fault In Our Stars and The Twilight Saga.

Ryan has collaborated with numerous noteworthy songwriters such as Billy Corgan of Smashing Pumpkins, Jon Foreman of Switchfoot, Sarah Brightman, and many others.

In this episode, Stephen talks with Ryan about his music composition, his Enneagram songs, and what motivates his creativity.

**This episode is brought to you by Sarah Duet –artist, communicator, & Enneagram teacher. Sarah works with groups and individuals to help foster creativity, connection, and community. To learn more about her new workshop, Enneagram Creativity: The 9 Types of Making, visit sarahduet.com/enneagramcreativity

S5 E7: Keep Going with Austin Kleon

Austin Kleon is the New York Times bestselling author of Steal Like an Artist, Show Your Work!, and The Steal Like an Artist Journal: A Notebook for Creative Kleptomaniacs. His work has been translated into over twenty languages and featured on NPR’s Morning Edition, PBS NewsHour, and in the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal.

The New Yorker said his poems “resurrect the newspaper when everybody else is declaring it dead.” He speaks about creativity in the digital age for organizations such as Pixar, Google, SXSW, TEDx, and the Economist.

In this episode, Stephen talks with Austin about his thoughts on creativity, originality and his brand new, follow up release titled Keep Going, Ten Ways to Stay Creative in Good Times and Bad.

**Patrons of the podcast can access an additional interview segment with Austin on Creativity as subtraction and how the deconstruction process of his blackout poetry creates a new art form.

Join Our Creative Collective today!

S4 E10: Nico Cox on The Art of Keeping Time

Nico Cox is an Antiquarian Horologist, which is a technical term for a clock and watchmaker who specializes in the conservation and restoration of antique automata and mechanical musical objects. Her workshop, Memoria Technica is located in Seattle, Washington where she teaches, creates and brings mechanical music, singing birds and complex clocks back to life again.

In this episode, Stephen talks with Nico about the magic of horology and the critical thinking involved in her unique art of restoration.

Patrons of the podcast can enjoy an additional interview with Nico on “The Church’s bizarre use of automata during Middle Ages” at http://www.patreon.com/makersandmystics

Featured Music in this episode: Unwed Sailor

S3 E12: What The Night Sings with Vesper Stamper

Vesper Stamper is an illustrator and author who was born in Nuremberg, Germany and raised in New York City. Her family was an eclectic mix of engineers, musicians and artists who didn't think Voltaire too tough for bedtime reading, Chopin Valses too loud for wake-up calls, or precision slide rules too fragile as playthings. She married filmmaker Ben Stamper right out of college, and together they have two wildly creative children. When Vesper earned her MFA in Illustration from School of Visual Arts, Ben gave her an orange tree. She illustrates and writes under its leaves and blossoms at her grandfather 's old drafting table, in the pine woods of the Northeast.

In this episode, Stephen talks with Vesper about her debut, young-adult historical novel, What The Night Sings. The two discuss Vesper’s creative process in writing and illustrating the book and how her interest in the Holocaust led her on a search for redemption in the midst of unimaginable circumstances.

authors, Process, illustrationStephen RoachMarch 21, 2018Vesper Stamper, Holocaust, young-adult fiction, illustration

S3 E7: Cosmos In The Chaos with Abstract Artist Ty Nathan Clark

Ty Nathan Clark is a well-known abstract artist living and working in Waco, Texas. He is a devoted activist, writer, cinematographer, and philanthropist. His work is informed by an in-depth study of civil rights movements, literature, philosophy, and theology.

Ty’s art has been described as “parabolic” in nature, telling stories in visual representations of the human condition. He uses a variety of mediums and textures to create what has been termed a “dismantled imagery, representing the incomplete bits and pieces of personality and memories that make up each human being.”

visual art, Process, Philosophy, Faith and ArtStephen RoachJanuary 11, 2018Abstract Art, Philosophy, visual artist, Mako Fujimura

S3 E2: Urban Monks & Part-Time Hermits

Christine Valters Paintner is a spiritual director and Benedictine Oblate living in Galway, Ireland. She authored the book, "The Artist's Rule: Nurturing Your Creative Soul with Monastic Wisdom." The book is a 12-week journey exploring the interplay between contemplation and creativity. In this episode, Stephen talks with Christine about her thoughts on humility, radical generosity and what it means to be an urban monk and a part-time hermit.

Featured Music by Latifah Alattas of Moda Spira.

Season Premiere! S3 E1: Around The Table with Jason Upton

In this episode, Stephen talks with singer/songwriter, Jason Upton about linear versus circular creative processes. This episode features previously unreleased material from the artist.

S2 E15: Speaking In Tongues: A Secular View of Pentecost

In this episode, Stephen talks with visual Paul Benney about his painting Speaking in Tongues, which is now on exhibit in Venice, Italy. Paul describes his secularist approach to the Pentecost story and tells how his exploration of the human spirit led him to a modern interpretation of the biblical narrative.

visual art, Inspiration, ProcessStephen RoachSeptember 13, 2017Paul Benney, visual artist, speaking in tongues

S2 E14: The Art of Noise: On Performance Art & The Gospel

The Clang Quartet is an improvisational percussion/performance-art show, based metaphorically on the life of Jesus Christ. In this episode, Stephen talks with Clang Quartet founder, Scotty Irving about performance art as a vehicle of the gospel. The two discuss the need for resilience and tenacity in presenting uncommon or abstract forms of art. Scotty tells about his electrified crutch and the meaning behind the sound collages of his "harsh noise" genre of art.

Season 2 Episode 12: On Process and Productivity with Matt Tommey

Matt Tommey is a woven sculpture artist living in Asheville, North Carolina. Matt has authored several books including "Unlocking The Heart of The Artist" and "Crafting Your Brand:
Simple Strategies for Cultivating a Successful Creative Career". In this episode, Matt and Stephen discuss Matt's process of utilizing natural materials for his sculptural works. The two talk through differentiations between process and product and how artists can move from concepts and ideas to a lifestyle of creative expression. *This episode features music by Zach Winters from the album "To Have You Around".

Faith and Art, marketing, sculpture, authors, Inspiration, ProcessStephen RoachJuly 19, 2017art, sculpture, process

S2 E11: On Vocation and Calling with Josh Garrels Part 2

This episode is Part 2 of a conversation with Josh Garrels. In this episode, Stephen Roach discusses Josh's honest lyricism, how our families and cultural environments inform the art we make.

Music, Process, Singer-songwriterStephen RoachJune 21, 2017Josh Garrels, music, Christian music, art, family

Season 2 E10: On Vocation and Calling with Josh Garrels Part 1

Josh Garrels is a Portland, Oregon-based singer/songwriter who combines elements of hip-hop, world music and folk in his songwriting. His lyrics are characterized by a raw honesty in exploring themes of faith, hope and compassion.

In this episode, Josh discusses his background in music and the pathway which led him to a vocation as a professional, independent musician. Josh talks with Stephen Roach about balancing family life and touring as well as how the choices of our personal lives inform the art we create. This episode is Part 1 of a two-part conversation.

Season 2 E 7: #poetryismyprotest

In the month of February 2017, Stephen Roach composed and posted a new poem each day of the month. These poems were written in response to the "artless and often contemptible mood" found within social media. Stephen set out to offer "choreography instead of industry", beauty instead of hostility and to place "a carnation in the barrels of loaded guns". In observance of National Poetry Month, Stephen shares several of his poems from this collection of writings featuring music by Timbre, Songs of Water, Loudharp and Brandon Willet. #poetryismyprotest

Joining Stephen in this episode is artist, Melina Daniels of Overflow Studios in Boone, NC. Melina shares a story of how she and her husband Jacob responded to the 2016 Charlotte protests surrounding the shooting of Keith Lamont Scott by setting up an outdoor art studio in the midst of the uprising.

Poetry is a vehicle of transcendence and social change. It is both protest and praise, a means of lifting the spirit and calling for action. In this episode, Stephen turns to the “ancient and analog” art of poetry as a means of response to the current challenges of our day.

**Special thanks goes out to Timbre, Loudharp, Songs of Water, and Brandon Willet for providing musical landscapes accompanying the poetry of this episode. Also, a special thanks to Elisa Cox, Eloise Corlett, Catherine Mi-Sook Roemer and Sarah Roach for voiceover contributions.

You can purchase a copy of Stephen's February poems at: stephenroach.org

poetry, Faith and Art, Justice, ProcessStephen RoachApril 25, 2017National Poetry Month, Stephen Roach, Poetry, Protest

S1 E14: Chaos & Familiarity with Artist Linnea Spransy

Linnea Spransy is a visual artist based in Los Angeles, California. Since graduating from Yale University in 2001 with an MFA in painting, her work has been exhibited throughout the United States and Internationally. Linnea maps out her compositions using intricate systems to explore the relationships between limitation and freedom. Her drawings and paintings coalesce a voracious interest in science, philosophy and theology.

visual art, ProcessStephen RoachOctober 4, 2016Linnea Spransy, Stephen Roach, Makers & Mystics

Episode S1 E11: Blood From The Quill: On The Making of "Stars & Dust" with Songs of Water

In this episode, members of the cinematic orchestra, Songs of Water discuss the beauty and the difficulties of creative collaboration. The discussion centers around reflections on their creative process in making the album Stars & Dust. Throughout the episode, the band shares songs and snippets of the developmental stages of their works in progress. You can find out more about Songs of Water at www.songsofwater.com

Music, ProcessStephen RoachJune 9, 2016Songs of Water, Stephen Roach, Luke Skaggs