Living Creatively with Denise Laurin

When artists create, they are “outputting.” But in order to output, you must first “input.” Many students come to me expressing the...

To ring in spring, I am promoting this soft, unisex jersey T. Regularly $18.50, the sale price is 20% off for a limited time. This shirt...

The Naperville Art League (NAL) is partnering with non-profit Loaves and Fishes for their annual Public Art Competition. All entries must...

Last week, a podcast I was listening to discussed the Letter of John Paul II to Artists written in 1999. Immediately, I was compelled to...

Several years ago, I had an opportunity to do art history talks for wealthy clients of a well known national bank. During the meeting to...

On another sleepless night last week, I found myself watching a video of the classical painter Juliette Aristides. During the interview...

by Denise Laurin Is more creativity on Your New Year’s Resolutions List? Creativity keeps us engaged in life in a positive way. I see it...

In my younger days, I truly believed there would be no more wars. I grew up in the post-WWII decades, and even with the Viet Nam War...

Over the past few months, I have begun exploring animals as subjects for drawing, partly because I was teaching a course on "Drawing...

I have often reflected on the idea that the world is set up to distract us from ourselves. We have our "to do" lists, places to be, our...

The other day while reading Artist's Magazine's special edition, “The Best of Drawing,” I felt inspired to verbalize why drawing is so...

The other day I heard a story about a theater major whose counselor told him to switch to Plan B because acting wasn't a "thing" anymore....

Some time ago, we experienced water damage and our wood floor had to be sanded down and re-stained as a result. All of the furniture had...

I don't know if Henri Fuseli intended to visualize his own demons in this 1781 painting titled "Nightmare," but he certainly captured the...

The most wonderful feeling I have ever experienced as an artist is the sensation that my hand is moving effortlessly over the surface, as...

Mind-mapping is a visual alternative to list-making. It engages both the left and ride sides of the brain. I first encountered the...

When creativity is flowing, we feel in the groove, ideas seem to arise effortlessly, and time stands still. The best way to unblock our...

For over twenty years I did not pick up a brush to paint or do much academic-style drawing. My fondest wish as a young artist was to draw...