Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Heidi Curley. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Heidi, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

I was a labor and delivery nurse for 20 years. In 2010 my life changed forever with the sudden tragic loss of my husband. I retired from nursing and wondered what I would do next as I continued to raise our three young daughters I picked up a canvas one day, and squeezed some paint from a tube and began to move the paint across the surface. It was in that moment that I started to heal. I continued to paint every day and began to notice light coming back through the darkness.. For me, it wasn’t about selling my artwork, which I did begin doing, it was more about the healing process as I created. I began selling my art at local art festivals and started teaching classes and workshops with mixed media and collage work. My art was showcased at a few local galleries along the way. In May of this year, along with two partners, I opened RedDoor Gallery in Camas Washington. It is a welcoming art hub, not only to show art from other local artist, but a space for teaching classes and we have working studio space as well

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

Creating art helped me come out of the darkness and find light again. I create art to gather people and help stomp out loneliness. We are better together. I was recently certified in the Art4Healing method. This method uses abstract art to express feelings with color when you do not have the words as you are working through grief, trauma, and stress.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

I am a strong believer in taking an art class, even if, and maybe especially if, you have never taken an art class before. Art is for everyone. When I teach a class I show you art supplies that you can find in your home to use to create mixed media collages. You do not need expensive paint, canvases, or brushes to engage in the creative process. As we experiment in the painting process
t is not about the product or the final masterpiece it is more about the journey that you take when you’re creating art. Supporting local artists does not just mean buying a piece of their art. You can also support artists by engaging in their social media in order to help them become more visible on that platform. Take the art class. It is so fun. We all need to complete the stress response with something creative. We have so much going on that is causing us to take stress into our body and if we do not complete the process by getting it out of our body, we know that it can create illness and disease. So if you don’t choose painting , take a dance class, listen to some music go to the theater. We could all use a little joy in our life.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The most rewarding part of being an artist is that I can just be. I stand before a canvas and begin to write my thoughts on the blank space It can be something happy something sad something stressful or even just my to do list for the day…anything, just getting some lines and marks on a blank canvas. I close my eyes and taking a big deep breath and exhale and then I reach for paints intuitively and I begin. There are layers upon layers, scratches into the wet paint, mark making from tools collected overtime and color glorious color ! I continue this process over and over and over again until I feel the stress and worry leave my body, and I feel content. When I paint there is a freedom that I do not feel any other way. My heart heals me.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://heidicurleyart.com
• Instagram: Heidi Curley Art
• Facebook: Heidi Curley Art

Image Credits

Heidi Curley
Lara Blair Photography