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The Art of Connection: A Conversation with Tracy Verdugo
0 Playsin 10 hours
There are some artists who teach technique. And then there are artists who invite you back to yourself. Tracy Verdugo is the latter.
Tracy Verdugo is an inspiration instigator, prolific painter, and bestselling author whose work radiates color, intuition, and deep connection. She lives in an artsy adobe home along the shores of Jervis Bay, Australia, where she paints in her little purple studio and hosts transformative creative workshops around the world.
Since 2000, Tracy has held 18 solo exhibitions, and her vibrant, intuitive mixed media works are held in private collections both in Australia and internationally. Inspired by global travel, texture, pattern, and bold color, she allows storytelling and instinct to guide each painting, often discovering the meaning within the layers as the piece unfolds.
At the heart of her work is connection — to one another, to the natural world, to the divine, and to the greater tapestry we are all part of. She gently reminds us that in every moment we have a choice: to participate in the creating or in the unraveling.
Above all, she is devoted to her family — visiting her daughters, delighting in her granddaughters, and adventuring through life with her beloved Marco — grounding her expansive creative world in love.
Website: https://tracyverdugo.com
Instagram: @tracyverdugo
Big thank you to our sponsor: Jet Creative: A women-owned marketing firm committed to community and empowerment. Whether you’re launching a podcast or building a website, Jet Creative can help you get started. Visit JetCreative.com/Podcast to kickstart your journey!
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Transcript
Introduction to Rebloom Podcast
00:00:02
Speaker
Welcome to Rebloom, a podcast about change, creativity, and coming back to yourself. We are Lori and Jamie, and this is a space for honest conversations with people who felt that quiet nudge to realign, whether that's in their work, their creativity, or their everyday lives.
00:00:21
Speaker
Each episode is a conversation about becoming, about listening closely, making shifts, and finding your way back to what matters. So if you are in a season of change, you're questioning or starting again, we are really glad you're here.
Meet Tracy Verdugo: A Creative Journey
00:00:40
Speaker
Lori, I cannot be more excited to kick off the year with this conversation with Tracy. Wow, wow, wow. I mean, it's just what a treat to talk with her about her journey.
00:00:54
Speaker
We have connected through Instagram for a while now, but to finally actually get to chat with her, i knew I was connected to her in some way, very much kindred spirits, but now I'm convinced. And I can't wait for everyone to hear more of her story because I learned some things that I didn't know.
00:01:15
Speaker
I would agree. I think she's rebloomed in the most beautiful ways. She was always a teacher, i think at heart, and she's certainly taken that and that's been the thread of her career, her art career. But I think you'll just see these beautiful, colorful moments throughout and it's a wonderful conversation and you're all in for lovely treat.
00:01:36
Speaker
Thank you all.
00:01:39
Speaker
We're kicking off the year with a really good one which actually reminds me because a couple years ago, i did a challenge on Instagram with this person and we kicked off the new year with that challenge. So kind of kind of fits right in This is going to be such a wonderful conversation. And even though we're kicking off the new year in the States in winter, it's actually... This person's
From Kids' Art Classes to Adult Art Retreats
00:02:06
Speaker
summer. So why don't I let you do the intro and we can get to our conversation.
00:02:12
Speaker
This is my friend, Tracy Verdugo, who i just feel like we are kindred spirits. She is all about color and whimsy and positivity. She's an author. She's a teacher.
00:02:27
Speaker
She's a global traveler. She does it all and she she's also a really great singer. She sometimes pops in on Instagram and sings to us, which is amazing. So hello, Tracy. I'm so glad you're here.
00:02:43
Speaker
Laurie. Hi, Jamie. It's so exciting to be here with you finally. i know. You're so excited. And if you can't tell already, Tracy is Australian. and And Tracy, where is home in Australia? So we live in a little village about two and a half hours south of Sydney. So we're right on the coast in a beautiful bay. There's dolphins, you know, swimming by and whales. And it's a really special place to be.
00:03:07
Speaker
And your home is so beautiful. And i recently connected you with Where Women Create for the Artist Lives Here feature because I love your mosaics and how you bring color into your home. So, yeah, your your whole world is colorful and magical. It's absolutely gorgeous.
00:03:28
Speaker
Oh, thank you. i mean, our home is like, it's it's both of our canvases, really. You know, Marco is the one who built the whole place and mud brick, adobe. And he did that beautiful mosaic um at the front entryway, the Tree of Life, which is a lovely story that goes with that as well. But yeah, we we love it here. it's um It's a place that, you know, we travel three months of the year and then we come home and we cocoon ourselves.
International Teaching and Traveling
00:03:55
Speaker
And it's it's a beautiful place to be.
00:03:58
Speaker
Oh, what a life. I love that. Well, and the fun thing that I love too about the art community is here we are having this conversation and through social media and through everything, you're able to connect with people in Australia and all over the world. And and we're grateful even in this podcast to bring people together and tell their stories. And this is just such a treat. So tell us about, we were doing some reading and some research. You originally were a teacher.
00:04:28
Speaker
So I actually wasn't, well, okay, yes, yes and no. um I had a business where I taught children. Okay. I taught kids art classes for 12 years, after school classes here in my little studio. And um at one point I had three afternoons a week with two sessions each afternoon. So that would have been like 24, like nearly a hundred kids coming through the studio um every week. And then concurrently with that, I got a job as a teacher's aid in special ed at the local high school.
00:05:01
Speaker
So I would go there and then come home and do the kids art classes. So yes, I was, I was teaching, but I'm not like a qualified teacher as far as in the education system. Yeah. I feel like a thousand kids makes you a qualified teacher. I'm going to go
00:05:18
Speaker
with you. Yeah, Okay, Lori, go ahead and ask. She loves this question. Well, I also wanted to say something about, we just interviewed Wendy Conklin yesterday, and I'm sure this is true for you. What she shared was when she was teaching teaching She made it her goal to bring fun and play into into the classroom yeah and make sure that everything she taught, no matter how dry the subject, she'd figure out a way to make it fun. Right. And I see you teach now globally your retreats and they do look so much fun. So I think that's your that's your MO. Did that start when you were young?
00:05:56
Speaker
Yes. Well, I think, yeah, I think I was one of those natural teacher kids, you know, like if you kind of went to a family barbecue or you knew out somewhere at a social outing, I would be the one that would gather all of the little kids into a room and sit them down and tell them.
00:06:11
Speaker
I was probably a bit bossy. Tell them where they needed to sit and what we were going to be doing. And I was the teacher always. So I think, um you know, that's kind of where it started. And then when I went to my first art class, I was 33.
00:06:24
Speaker
So I had not ever done any art before that. And the first thing I wanted to do was gather the neighborhood kids. And I was so excited what I was learning. And I just wanted to kind of bring them in. And, you know, every afternoon I would teach them in kid language what I'd been learning at my adult art class. So it was just a natural flow through for me.
Art Philosophy and Personal Expression
00:06:46
Speaker
What was the pivot that brought you 33 to that art class? Yeah, you know, i for a long time I separated... art and I think a lot of people do this I felt like art was something special that only some people got to do it was very elite um there were very famous people who were artists um and then you know there was the rest of us or maybe even that you just had a special talent you were born with and I did not feel I was born with that special talent my brother was he was like the just an amazing drawer. He could sketch anything. and And it took me a long time to realize that the reason why he was so good was that he just spent every minute of his time copying cartoons and drawing from the movies and, you know, that type of thing.
00:07:38
Speaker
And it was like, oh, you know, it i think I was probably in my 20s before I realized that oh, anybody can actually learn to paint and learn to draw. And then the other huge thing I think that really turned me around was that we started traveling um and I had never traveled as a child except for within Australia. My husband is from California and he has family in Mexico as well. And so we had these long extended trips in Mexico and Guatemala when I was in my early twenty s
00:08:11
Speaker
And i I saw that there are cultures in the world where art is an intrinsic part of their everyday life. They're weaving their clothes and they're wearing those clothes out into the field where they're plowing and they're painting their beautiful hand handmade pots and dishes and things. And then they're eating their meals out of the yeah out of the artwork they've created. And it just really started to kind of make me realize that art was not this elite thing that only some people got to do. It was actually in many cultures, a part of everyday life. um And that somehow, you know, we were separating out people who make craft from people who who are a fine artists. And I started to kind of rebel inwardly against that and wanted to not only learn myself how to bring this out of me, but also how to bring it out of other people and kind of take away those blocks.
00:09:09
Speaker
I love that. It's interesting that you you kind of started with the comparison thing with your brother because Samantha Baker, who's been on, who draws and made has made a career with her drawing books, didn't do it for the longest time because her sister drew so well. And she she thought, well, that's her thing. yeah So, you know, she does that so well. So I have to do something else and I'm not as good at it. And the other thing about that is a lot of people do associate being an artist with being able to draw realistically really well. yeah and
00:09:47
Speaker
And art and creativity can take so many forms. yeah You know, there are people making assemblages out of plastic bottles that they took out of, they found on the beach or Yeah, yeah, exactly. It's an expression, it's a passion. Right, right. It makes me sad that that barrier is there with so many people. Yeah, you know, I talk a lot now, especially after working with neurodivergent kids for that seven years, I talk a lot with my students about how different all of our brains are, you know, and how amazing that is and how wonderful that is. And, like, we might not all be able to draw –
00:10:25
Speaker
you know meticulous drawings and also like some of us we see color in completely different ways as well some of us can see a whole range of tonal shifts I've done this with my daughter who she can actually paint like realistically super realistically but we did there's a like a little um game called I love hue h-u-e that you can get on your phone it's a gamified kind of recognition of um changes of tones and you have to move the little squares around till they all line up it's really fun oh but it's so hard for me like I don't see all of the the subtle shifts that she does and so it's just it's so interesting you know and I just think there's room for all of our brains in the way that we the process things and the way that we light up in different areas. And, um, the more we stop comparing, comparing ourselves to other people, the better, you know, that's, um, we're different and that's the beautiful thing.
Online Communities and Retreat Tours
00:11:21
Speaker
It is the beautiful thing. And I think it's, and to your, to both of your points, it's finding, finding the medium that works best for you. And I'm a photographer, L'Oreal, and I'm trying my hand at drawing. I'm trying my hand Yes, you just shared some of your things. And yeah I'm very proud of you, Jane. I know, but it's but I'm finding my way that works for me. And that's the thing. I think people are told, you're you're terrible, or there's a comparison in there. And I love that.
00:11:49
Speaker
Not only did you, you were seeking that for yourself, but you're helping others to do that, too. That's really wonderful. That's wonderful. i I'm sure you appreciate this too when you're teaching. i i love just showing the technique or sharing a little bit about the materials or whatever. And then at the end of class, seeing how everybody's interpretation is different. Yeah. crazy yeah i love that so much i could never teach one of those wine and sip classes no no no no no it would blow me to see that sets people up for failure too because they're right away comparing what they're doing to the thing that the the leader is showing them exactly right i don't i don't like that
00:12:36
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. I always say it. Sorry. Go ahead. Go ahead. I always say at the beginning of a retreat or a workshop that, you know, if there are say 15, 16 of us in the room that all of us are going to end up being teachers for each other. Absolutely. Me included. I'm the student in the bunch too because I walk around just like you, Laurie, and I'm like, holy moly, I never thought to kind of interpret in that way or those colours together, I would never have done that. Amazing. And so you're learning so much as well.
00:13:10
Speaker
Absolutely. That's one of the things I love. And you're right. And not only am I learning from other people, like I know I'll tell them all the time. I'm like, I'm totally going to steal that because he's so like I'm going to do that too. and And then people in the room do that with each other. yeah i i just love it so much. It's so fun. And I think it's the greatest compliment too. And I I've told this to my students when we're doing floral design, when you have 12 students and you have 12 completely different arrangements or something. And it's like, and exactly, because then they aren't copying. And i'm like, no, I'm going to do mine. And to your point, to both of your point, I'm like, oh, wouldn't have thought to, you know, I love that high, down low, however it may be. And again, it's just letting people's heart lead them rather than
00:13:57
Speaker
copying something and trying to imitate. And it's really just trying to just do their own thing. I love that. So you, you were teaching kids for, so let me get the timeline, right? So you started taking art yourself yeah and then that led to teaching kids. And then were you, how long before you were actually teaching other adults in retreats and things like that? So I started the kids classes like right around the turn of the century.
00:14:32
Speaker
makes us In the olden days back in 2000. and um and And it took me a good look. Sometime somewhere in the middle of that, I remember I read this book um by an artist in Portland called Dori Cantor. And she had a book called Art Escapes. And I you know was buying art books to get ideas for the kids and things like that. And she had some great little exercises in there. And there was a line in one of her exercises that just stopped me in my tracks. So it was 2008. And she said, this is something I like to do when I take my groups to the south of Italy to sketch. And I went, what? What? What?
00:15:13
Speaker
and that's a thing somebody does that for a job get out you know and at that stage the girls were still young and so you know you plant the seeds don't you I planted the little seed one day one day maybe I could do that and then um when Sienna was 15 and Santana was 18 I found myself with an impending um empty nest like way too early because Sienna decided to go on an exchange um to my husband's high school in California for six months oh wow and then Santana was leaving to go to university and I'm like this is way you know no I'm not ready for this I need to do something for myself as well so that I don't like just collapse in a heap and um
00:15:58
Speaker
So that was 2011. So I reached out to um a retreat organizer in the US, Sally Ann McClelland, who used to organize the Art is You retreats. And, um,
00:16:12
Speaker
ah It was funny. I had no idea. Like I i was like, hello, my name is, here's my paintings. Can I come and teach? And she's like, oh, sweetheart, like we kind of have our teachers all lined up like a whole year ahead of time. And, you know, with everything's already planned. And I think she, because she was also Australian, I think she just thought I was a little bit cheeky and she liked that. And she just said, look, why don't you come anyway? And we'll make small slot for you, maybe three hour slot. I'm like, Okay, because I thought well I could go over there and I could visit my daughter while she was doing her exchange and all of that.
00:16:46
Speaker
And um yeah, and then I don't know whether someone pulled out, but in in the end, I ended up having like a whole three days worth of workshops at that retreat. And at the same time, I had a big group on Facebook.
00:16:59
Speaker
called the Magically Mixed Art Community. And it was really just a bit of a fluke that I started it because I was just, you know, it was back in 2010, I think. And I just saw the little button for groups pop up. And I'm like, what is a group? Oh, what can I do? with Ring! Oh, okay, make a name. Okay, I'll make a name.
00:17:19
Speaker
And it was all so naive. And then it was like, hey, I'm just painting and do you want to come and, you know, hang out? And so we ended up having like a few thousand people in that group at that point. And we were all friends. It was a very kind of different space at that time. And um beautiful community. And so when I said to everybody that I was coming over to do this stint at this retreat in California, I had like 12 amazing, beautiful women all put their hands up and say, well, if you're going to come this far, you need to come to Texas, come to Florida, come to the East Coast, you know don't miss us, come to North Carolina. And so within about three days, I had a 12 week tour lined up and I had never solo traveled before.
00:18:01
Speaker
Right. it So it was crazy. It was crazy and wonderful. wow So were they, were all these people finding venues for you? Yes. Oh my goodness. So it was like, I was just doing the two day workshops like every weekend. So I'd fly to a different state, work on the weekend and then have some time to hang out with my new friends. And um yeah, they were all finding the venues and doing the organizing for me. And, you know, of course they would come.
00:18:32
Speaker
for free to the class and you know so it was just a beautiful organic unfolding really um and then the more it happened the more people would be like are you coming back next year can we do it again you know um and so it just started from there so I was 47 I think when that all kind of happened um yeah so I just turned 60 this year so um you're in the club yeah almost This episode of Rebloom is brought to you by Jet Creative, a women owned creative studio and longtime friends of our podcast.
00:19:11
Speaker
Jet Creative partners with brands and individuals to help clarify their story, strengthen their visual presence and communicate with intention. Their work is rooted in collaboration, care, and the belief that thoughtful creativity has the power to connect with people in meaningful ways.
00:19:29
Speaker
We are extremely grateful for their continued support of Rebloom and the conversations we care so deeply about. You can learn more about Jet Creative and their work by visiting the link in our show notes.
00:19:43
Speaker
Before we continue, we just want to share this. This May, we're gathering for the Live Courageously Rebloom Conference, a few intentional days to pause, connect, and re-bloom.
00:19:56
Speaker
If you are craving space to reflect and reconnect, we'd love to have you with us. Details are in the show notes. And now let's jump back into our conversation.
00:20:09
Speaker
But that's an incredible pivot point. I mean, of things of, and we've talked to many guests too, about um building community, like you built it online. yeah And then even though you, you know, and and it's also reaching out, Hey, and you know, even though things have changed and evolved, still reach out. You never know. Somebody may cancel. And the next thing you know, you have this full unfolding, yeah which shows what it's like to travel teach.
Publishing 'Paint Mojo' and Community Feedback
00:20:36
Speaker
Yes, yes. Big, great way. Yeah. That's amazing. Yeah, absolutely. You know, and I was so fresh and so, ah you know, i I, gosh, I had no idea. I took, I was traveling with like two, my maximum, you know, two suitcases, two 50-pound suitcases. Oh, yeah. Awesome. Because I just thought I needed everything. I needed to have all the paints and everything. And I remember one time being in San Francisco and i I can't remember where I had to get to, but I had to get from somewhere to somewhere on the BART, the the rail line yeah
00:21:07
Speaker
And the taxi driver dropped me off. He's like, this is the station. And I looked around and I'm like, oh, my God, there are three flights of stairs to get down to where the train is. And I've got Ka-plunk, ka-plunk, ka-plunk, ka-plunk. so i've streamlined it a lot more now well i've learned that lesson too travel bringing things to europe of and don't bring huge suitcases on the trains no not a good idea props and camera equipment and everything and i swear tsa just looks at me and is like um what are you doing Yeah. ready
00:21:44
Speaker
yeah Makes it fun. it does. Always a good story. so You also wrote a book. Oops, sorry. yeah We love to talk over each other. We're women.
00:21:58
Speaker
that what we do Teaching the book. Go ahead. Okay. You also wrote a book called Paint Mojo, I believe. i did. That kind of, you've kind of created a whole movement around that, haven't you, in a way? Yeah, it was funny because...
00:22:18
Speaker
that okay so again you know it was this thing about asking as you say like don't be afraid to ask and to be curious and that's within art making as well that's what I really teach people to do um and so I had had an editor the Tonya Jenny she was an editor with Northlight Books and she came to that first retreat that I did in California and we had a great, I think it three-day workshop.
00:22:47
Speaker
And I was curious about how did you write, how do you write a book? How do you put together a book proposal? What what is that process like? And so, you know, she chatted with me over a meal and told me, you know, that I just needed to come up with an idea. What is the book going to be about, you know? And so I started thinking, and the first idea I had was a kind of around the idea of creative wanderlust, of how we can be inspired by travel. but we can also be inspired by a walk around neighborhood, you know, and so that type of a thing. And she didn't really, yeah, she was like, oh yeah, I don't know, it's not really grabbing me. And then she said, why don't you write a book about the process of your workshop?
00:23:27
Speaker
And I went, huh, okay, well, that's interesting. I could break down each exercise and turned it into, you know, like art as a metaphor for life, that type of a thing. And again, I'd never written a book. I had no idea how to go about it. I saw that some other people who were writing art books had collaborators. They asked other artists to be a part of their book and to maybe submit an exercise.
00:23:51
Speaker
And so I thought, well, that would kind of lighten the load a little bit. So again, i reached out to like other artists and asked if each one would be a part of but you know itch a chapter and everyone said yes. And, um, and then I started putting it together bit by bit and I was on the road teaching at the same time, um, as, as writing. And it was tough, you know, it's not an easy process to, put a book together, especially when you're telling life stories, kind of parables, I guess, you know, to do with each chapter and each, each exercise that you're working on.
Balancing Art Retreats and Family Life
00:24:27
Speaker
Um, a lot of work, but,
00:24:31
Speaker
Funnily, you don't have a lot of say about the editing or the title. And when it came to naming the book, the edit the um publishers wanted to call it magically mixed Magically Mixed Art Media Making or something like that because of the group that I had created on Facebook. And I was not attached to that. That was literally an accidental name. I was not attached to that at all. and I'm like, no, no, no, it has to be Paint Mojo. And they're like well, some people won't even know what that means, you know. um but and anyway, so I quickly started another group on Facebook and like a group for, but you know, like to um, to kind of ask people what should the title be this or this? And overwhelmingly, you know, a thousand people in one day said, no, of course it should be paint mojo. You know, it couldn't be anything else. And so I kind of tagged the editor and tagged the publishers. I'm like, look, that's brilliant. Yeah. Yeah, this is what it should be. And so they said, okay, we can be paint mojo. And and that's how that kind of happened. What great story. I love how you you you went back to your community a again. yeah Yeah. I mean, you're so good at that. And it's authentic. You can tell. Yeah. like You can tell you love people. you love teaching. You love sharing. And that comes through in everything you do.
00:25:51
Speaker
like People are so amazing. And it is, it's like, you know, when you're with, especially when you're with those in-person groups, and I know that you feel this way too, Laurie, that you kind of fall in love with everyone by the end of the week. you know I know. And then you're like, sorry and I can't meet them for coffee tomorrow. I know. And there's a little bit of a sadness about like, I might not see these people ever again. know, oftentimes you do. Oftentimes you meet up. Yeah. yeah it's so It's a weird thing, but It's such a good, you know, that to be a teacher is so lovely because we give, but then they give so much back to us in the same time. It really is. just It's so beautiful. And I love, and you do, you have all these great friends and you want to, and but it's just such a wonderful thing that you're doing. And and are you still traveling a ton?
00:26:40
Speaker
yeah teacher kind of Yeah. So I, um we now have two granddaughters who are, and they're adorable. they're so you So cute. So that, um, Nora is five. She's just turned five and may is turning two on the weekend.
00:26:54
Speaker
So, Now it's like when I go away, I've got this kind of like thread that's pulling me back, you know, and it's like you can FaceTime and everything, but it's not the same as being there, and you know, for snuggles and playing and painting and all of that. So we are trying to We're still traveling each year, but we're trying to kind of shorten it a little bit, but it's tricky um because we're so far away in Australia so that if we go to Europe or we go to the States, um there's always other, like, you want to see places you haven't seen before. You want to visit with family. And so it always ends up extending. um and so we're trying to keep it we're between the 10 and 12 week mark now when we go away um yeah which is which is good because that gives time for play and time for work as well so it's it's a good balance so I know you so you batch kind of your teaching in one you know three month period or whatever yeah how how is that for you teaching like back-to-back weeks Yeah, I've only done like actual back-to-back one time, like where the one group left in the morning and the next group came in the afternoon. And that was was tough. It's tough just psychologically getting your head around saying goodbye to everybody and then like going, hello, everybody. Yeah. Welcome. Yeah. You do need some deep time to kind of decompress and debrief and all of that. And just I'm pretty much, you know, I'm i'm on the introverted side of the spectrum, um kind of towards the middle. But, you know, i I do feel drained after teaching. Right. Yeah. So now I try and have at least like five to seven days off in between.
00:28:39
Speaker
one retreat retreat to the next. And that works. That works really well. Yeah. Yeah. yeah yeah And you teach online as well? Yeah, I do. Yeah. I have like 14 classes, 14 or 15 classes online. And how do you like that versus teaching live?
00:28:56
Speaker
You do love the online. Yeah. um Yeah. So I have, like, I don't, I don't do any like live online classes anymore, as in, you know, we're turning up for a period of time. They're all just self-paced. okay now but i do have an alumni group on facebook that has like i don't know 10 000 people in it and so that's that's yeah i like the hangout place if anybody has any questions or but mostly they chat with each other you know it's like everybody shares their work that's the beautiful thing like my daughter and her friends were hosting their first retreat last year and they were nervous the morning of and i'm like you know
00:29:35
Speaker
you really are just the fun facilitator and the gatherer. And then they, they do their thing. Yeah, they do. And they connect with each other and they bond with each other and they're just happy to be there and be creative and be with kindred spirits. yeah And they just want a little bit of your joy and light, but they're, yeah, they're just, everybody's just happy to get away. And so I have a question though, cause you started with Facebook and And pulling your groups together, but you've also got a huge following on Instagram.
Social Media and Artistic Communities
00:30:05
Speaker
So obviously that came to be probably mid 2015s-ish or later that. Yeah. And so do you have two communities now or do you do you have a virtual community as well? I mean, you have a huge virtual community. Yeah. So I guess I'm... i'm
00:30:22
Speaker
i I'm more more... No, I'm probably equal on both platforms, actually. I probably spend just as much time, maybe a little bit more on Instagram. Yeah. Yeah, just because I i like the format and the reels and the fun of that and and all that. But then I still check into the Facebook alumni group a couple times a week as well. Yeah. So they're both, they're both going.
00:30:46
Speaker
Yeah. It's hard to keep up with all of that. I know. But it connects, such a lovely connector. I just finished teaching at the New York Botanical Garden and I was teaching at the illustrators and they were afraid you know they're afraid of social media and i said i i totally hear you but then there's so many beautiful things that come out of those connections yeah i mean just think about it that facebook led to 12 weeks in the united states right which led to a whole yeah a whole career a whole it led the the social connections often lead to real connections and that's and that's the thing that
00:31:26
Speaker
people kind of forget and that the more you be authentic it actually leads to real life friendships so that's exactly and also like there's this whole thing around people will often kind of say that they've been to retreats or workshops where the instructor was not really forthcoming with their instruction you know or that they didn't like to share their secrets or anything like that I'm like why are you even teaching if you don't Yeah, I know, I've heard the same. Yeah, or, you know, they teach something and they're like, you are not allowed to use any of these things when you go out and paint, you know? It's like, what? Okay. So anyway, like, I feel like we are part of a community, not only of the students and us, but also us as teachers and and professional artists. And, like, after this, I've got a call with somebody who um I've just done one of her online classes, Nicola Bennett from New Zealand, And she just popped into my DMs and she was like, hey, I've been approached by somebody about retreats and I've never done one. I'm a bit scared. And I'm like, well, let's just have a call and I'll tell you my experience and give you some tips and blah, blah, blah. And so, you know, that is where that kind of sharing with each other. It's like, I feel like always it's an abundant universe. And
00:32:41
Speaker
the more you kind of get into that scarcity mentality and kind of withdraw, the smaller everyone's world gets, right? Whereas, you know, if we're helping each other, that so what if, like, there are 500 people out there doing art retreats? The more the better, right? The more the better because the more people then it's kind of like, wow, art retreats are the thing, you know?
00:33:02
Speaker
we all want to go on an art retreat. You know, my friend went on one. Maybe I should go on one. And so it just makes the whole thing more exciting and, yeah.
Selling Art Online and Personal Practice
00:33:10
Speaker
Yeah, I agree. So um another lane that I think you play in is you've done gallery shows. Yeah, not so much like small galleries, because we live in a regional area. um And we're like, you know, almost three hours from the city. um There have been small galleries pop up and sometimes like, you know, restaurants and cafes will let you have shows in areas like this and so I have done that locally and also with we have like a semi a bi-annual winter art festival in our area and so a lot of artists will actually open up their homes and so it's been more along those lines than in an actual you know um professional gallery and and I look when I'm I'm probably 80% teaching and 20% painting for myself um which I'm hoping at some point in my life will begin to shift yeah yeah um so the art that I sell is mainly online now through through Instagram um or like a once a year sale you know a big online sale once a year um yeah yeah that's kind of the way i wanting to do that part yeah i mean when you do the gallery and all and then you have to do shipping and all i'm like i don't want to deal with all of that yeah yeah don't know i have a tendency and i always have to overcomplicate things and um
00:34:40
Speaker
to do things the the hard way. i have a ah friend who's originally from India and um we were talking about this, you know, like instead of just going directly from A to B, know, I'll just put in all these other stops and then somebody will tell me, you could have just done it like this and I'll be like,
00:34:55
Speaker
oh yeah i could have just done like that she said her father called it going the ingara vingara you're going the ingara vingara and I'm like yeah I'm doing that all the time right oh my god I can so relate to this so at some point I put it in my head you know that expression the kiss expression keep it simple yeah yeah sweet stupid whatever yeah I just keep on saying that all the time and so I have done that in a lot of ways and so I'm not selling like if I sell works on paper they are unframed they have some cardboard on the back they're in cellophane and they are sold unframed and they ship off around the world and so the shipping is not
00:35:36
Speaker
crazy and you don't have to worry about breakage and all of that. And that, that works just fine. People are like, great. I can get my own framer to frame it the way I want it. So, you know, little things like that.
00:35:47
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. Little things. So going forward, what, what types of things are you wanting to do? Thinking about dreaming about?
00:35:57
Speaker
Yeah. Oh, so like I said, I want to spend more time on my own art practice. And I've been doing a little bit more of that, like spending a couple of afternoons a week, trying to disassociate myself from teacher mind, which is really hard.
00:36:15
Speaker
Cause even if I'm exploring something new for myself, if it's good or if I am excited about it, then my first inclination is to like, put it online, show people, talk about what I did, dadada you know, like you could do this too. So there's a real like, ah, just like,
00:36:33
Speaker
having to to try and um keep some things to myself while I explore them a little bit longer it's an ongoing struggle so there's that um and then just you know the the traveling just loving that like every year trying to get to some new places that we've never been to before Um, so that's super fun.
00:36:57
Speaker
um and then just working on new ideas for online classes as well. There's always like a ah box full of those, you know? Oh, I'm sure. Yeah. Yeah. You introduce classes online regularly?
00:37:11
Speaker
ah try and do at least one a year. um and, um Yeah. So lately, like the last couple of years, they've been smaller classes, you know, you just keep your eye on the economy and it feels like people are wanting either bite-sized or smaller offerings. Um, and so that's what we're doing at the moment. And also like doing more on my YouTube channel as well. Um, as a, a way to share and then also to kind of bring people into the community to look at other classes as well. um So that's that's fun. I'm so lucky I have um our youngest daughter, cc Sienna, Sissi, she works for me 20 hours a week. um And so she does all of the video editing, emails. She doesn't do social media, but she does pretty much everything, website building. all of that. um So I couldn't do it without, without it.
00:38:12
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. Well, it's interesting hearing how you've, I mean, the, the, the common thread is the teaching. It's interesting. It started with the little kids and yeah and you sort forget the qualification, but whether that is thread throughout, but it's lovely how you've changed and pivoted,
00:38:33
Speaker
Throughout your career, keeping that and and finding new ways to teach, whether it be online, whether it be a travel teaching, retreats, um the book. i mean even I mean, all of that is giving of yourself and the gifts that come back to you. That's incredible. Thank you.
00:38:52
Speaker
Wow. You're always so good at summarizing, Jamie. hi probably about yeah i'm I'm curious. See, here's my question. Now, this is what Lori always says. I'm curious. I'm curious how your art has shifted, though, from that first art class to where you are now over the years. So we've done the teaching and that shifted, but how has your own own artwork shifted?
00:39:14
Speaker
Yeah. So, you know, it's funny that one of the questions that students will often ask is like, how long does it take to find your own style or your own voice? Yeah. And...
00:39:24
Speaker
it's a lot of these questions are so open-ended or how how do you finish a painting? Like they're all they're all highly personal, right? There's no one answer for any
Challenging Art Perceptions and Future Projects
00:39:34
Speaker
of them. um For me, I feel like it took me a good 11 years to even start to say, i think that I have something that's a bit unique um something that's me and part of that was because those first 10 11 years I really wasn't spending a lot of time painting I would just paint where I could around working um and so I wasn't really learning the materials properly like acrylics were so hard for me for so long
00:40:05
Speaker
I just didn't know how to move them and they would dry quickly and I would get frustrated or I put too much on my brush and globs, you know, like all of the things that you see. And because I wasn't like really painting enough to move through that or even learning from other people, right, um I wasn't doing any classes. So I did a class um in 2011 with Flora Bollie, which was was a bit of a breakthrough for me. um so She came to Australia and she did a bunch of workshops and I hosted her and there was just a couple of things that really changed everything for me and one was um having a spray bottle I mean this silly silly things had never thought to have a spray bottle and to spray and to let the you know like the but let the paint rip and that was like a revelation whoa yeah Yeah. Crazy. And then the other one was the idea that I didn't have to know what I was going to paint before I started painting.
00:41:04
Speaker
So that was massive, right? Because before it was like, oh, you must have a picture or something or something that you're going to paint. And then I was like, no, you could just spend some time and put some layers on and and play with the medium and you know and then see if something... you know And so I started to research other artists who worked in that way and went down those rabbit holes. And so that kind of opened me up to a completely different way of looking at things. And then at the same time, I was doing a fine arts degree online through Open Universities Australia. So I was learning a lot there. And I had this professor who I was working with one-on-one. We had to submit a body of work.
00:41:45
Speaker
And he said to me, like, I want you to come up with a theme and then you need to be able to as an artist, you know, if you're going to be exhibiting, you need to be able to explain your theme in fancy, you know, art language, right? And so I started to think about something I'm very interested in, like quantum physics and spirituality and how they merge. And so I was thinking about um the worlds within worlds. Like if you look into a microscope, know,
00:42:12
Speaker
as far as you can see, you'll get to um to kind of the cellular, the little organic cellular shapes. And then if you looked way out into the universe with telescope, you'd see the same kind of 99% space. and yeah So anyway, that was my theme. And so he said, so you mean like you are going to do a body work about the universe? He said, do you think maybe you could narrow it ah down just a little bit, you know, maybe string theory or yeah i'm doing the universe?
00:42:41
Speaker
That was when I first kind of stumbled across what I guess has become maybe a signature in my style, which is like the little peek throughs to the underlayers, you know, honouring the process and leaving glimpses of what came before. um and so, yeah I feel like that was two things that the workshop I went to and then the fact that I was, yeah, working on that.
00:43:04
Speaker
um degree as well at the same time and so since then um i'm on never-ending quest um to find a way to tell the stories of my actual experience so um our travels people we meet places we've been stories that we've shared in a semi-abstract way I still haven't completely got there yet but that's kind of what I'm working on in my own head is you know how do I how do I take what I do and tell the stories but not in a super literal way and I've done a few but they're all different from you know what mean like I haven't found the one way can't wait to see is your trav Your travel life is so rich. Yeah. i can't wait to see how that evolves in your work.
00:43:56
Speaker
Yeah. And you actually asked like what excites me about the future. I have always wanted to write books in the travel memoir genre. So yeah. so that's also like on the,
00:44:08
Speaker
the back burner, but I know it's going to happen someday. i' illustrated An illustrated Yeah, and it could even be, you know, about like the experience of running retreats and things as well, you know, the people that you meet. Love it.
00:44:24
Speaker
I'll give you the idea. Actually, you said it already, and I think it would be fascinating when you travel to the different places, how people incorporate art. in their world.
00:44:35
Speaker
Yes. Like if you went to Sweden or Australia or any of the places that you are, like how art, like I loved when you were describing going to Mexico, I was like, well, yeah, I can see all those colors and I can see those colors, how they influenced your artwork. Jamie, that's an awesome idea. I would have 100% more. I would want that book to see like art,
00:45:01
Speaker
are people living in art in all those places. Wouldn't that be cool? That's so cool. It's so funny because I have a friend in Ireland who's a producer. She's worked on several documentaries and she's actually coming. We're meeting for the first time next year. She's coming to a class in the UK and she wanted to do like a series with me, that kind of a thing where we went to different countries or places to see how art is a part of their everyday life. I may not get to do that, but the book could be. Yeah.
00:45:31
Speaker
There you go. This is very rich. I love it. We just told everybody, but no. Yeah. Nobody takes that idea. Nobody takes that idea. We just pitched it. If and there's a producer or or an editor out there listening, it be beautiful because I think That's the part. I mean, it's it's just sort of the traditions and everything that we all have that we've carried through. But it is really lovely if you go to you know just the textures. For instance, as you said, in Ireland, the textures of the linens or the the weaving or anything that, I mean, I just love being in different places for those reasons and yeah to become aware of those. And yeah, yeah that would be really
00:46:11
Speaker
I do feel like there's been this, you know, separation between what people see as art yeah versus craft. Yes, yes. But I do feel like there is, I don't know, maybe I just make this up in my mind because I want it to be so, but I feel like there's more of a convergence of the two and more of an appreciation. Yeah. of craft. Yeah. yeah I feel the same. Yeah. We we met. I'm sorry.
00:46:39
Speaker
ahead. No, I was going to say, I remember i I talked to some potters and. Yeah. They spent a lot of time talking about the beauty, looking at the beauty of the pottery in their hutch and how lovely it was, but then also the beauty of the food on yeah ah on on those plates. And it really has given me a new appreciation. And i love that's why i love handmade pottery so much. Yeah. Well, we're justians we're totally in sync because I was just going to talk about when I took some groups to Oaxaca, we always go and visit this man, this um beautiful man, Jose Garcia Antonio, and he's a blind potter.
00:47:19
Speaker
And he lives in a very rustic studio, like home and studio, like a family compound with little shacks and all the family and the grandkids and everything live there. And his whole yard is filled with these life-size mermaids and like women with bowls of fruit, all just in the terracotta pottery, like the no pen. my God, I need to see there. I need to go there. Yeah, so I have like a collection of his small mermaids. And so he lost his sight forever.
00:47:48
Speaker
I think maybe 20 years ago. And so now he and his wife, his wife Teresa, he's so funny. He's he's one of these guys got a twinkle in his eye and he talks about his wife's beautiful, what does he call him? The golden, her breast. golden he peaches peaches of gold or something she she she is his muse for all of his women and he makes right so he can feel what is right and um she now helps him finish off some of the things because he really has lost his lost his sight and his grandkids help as well um but it's just magnificent to see what he does and like if anybody could not call you know
00:48:30
Speaker
call him a fine artist. Like this, is the heat right he is a true artist. I'll send you, I'll send you guys some photos of his stuff. He's amazing. so I need, I need to go. Yeah.
Upcoming Travels and Global Impact
00:48:43
Speaker
oh well that what You know, and it's just, and that's just a beautiful Testament too, that everybody if Everybody can be an artist. I mean, here's somebody who's blind, who's doing artwork and finding his way through his hands and his heart and his soul. and yeah And we all have it in us. We all do.
00:49:02
Speaker
And how incredible you're teaching. Okay, so it's 2026. What's on the horizon for you this year? Yeah, so um we are heading off in, let let me think, May. Yes, in May to the UK. And so I have a little workshop in the Cotswolds to start off with.
00:49:23
Speaker
um A past student who came to Oaxaca with me. So this is how it all goes. And she's like, yes, we have a place. We can have we have one here. And then heading on a road trip up to Scotland, we're going to see um quite a few different things on the way. And then I'm doing a retreat. near Edinburgh. um And then we fly over to Portugal, another retreat um in Portugal, and then we fly to Greece. And I'm doing one on Zakynthos, an island of the Peloponnese. And so that's
00:49:56
Speaker
That's this year's sketchbook. Lovely. Sounds fun. Yeah. Yeah. Oh, my gosh.
Closing Thoughts and Gratitude
00:50:04
Speaker
Oh, my gosh. What an incredible conversation. Thank you so much for talking with us. You're so welcome. It's been beautiful. Thank you, guys. Well, we wanted to do this, and we tried a while ago when you were you were on the road and in your travel travel period. Yeah.
00:50:22
Speaker
yeah So I'm so glad we were able to make it happen. Yeah. connect with you Well, thank you so much and have a wonderful new year and how lucky your students are going to be to have you teach them this year and those online too, and connect with you and to our, to our listeners.
00:50:41
Speaker
She's incredible. So you've got, you've got to check out Tracy's work and we'll have it. We'll have it for you too. It's amazing for you to see everything. Thank you, Jamie. Thank you, Laurie. Thank you. I'm going to chat with you.
00:50:53
Speaker
And our listeners, peace, love, and Rebloom this year and always. Thanks for spending this time with us on Rebloom. We hope something from today stays with you. Maybe a thought, a feeling, or a spark of inspiration.
00:51:09
Speaker
And if this conversation resonated, we really hope you'll share it with a friend. We sure are grateful you're here, and we'll see you next time.