That would be me ... Dakota. I love Massage and the Holistic Health that I do for a living but really, my true passion is in the creation of art - watercolor, acrylics, 3D art out of found objects, furniture building, decorating, graphic design, web design, writing, etc. etc. If it can be created, I love the process of doing so.

I wrote my first story when I was 7 years old, it was a gruesome story about Big Foot and camping.

Every weekend from the time I was strong enough to move furniture (about 8 years old) until last weekend I have re-arranged the furniture in my surroundings. My friends joke they have never seen my home the same way twice. They are right, they haven't and most likely never will.

While living in Arizona I began "Art Gatherings" in which I would invite around 80 other artists to come play - we had all art mediums to participate in, a huge bon fire in the middle of the desert, drumming, food, and an incredible atmosphere of creativity. Those Art Gatherings lasted every month for 5 years solid.

I worked with an earth home builder in AZ and learned a lot about building furniture, European Faux finishes in concrete and can now create a floor that looks like genuine flagstone at a third of the cost. It's labor intensive and grueling work so I no longer wish to create such floors - so don't even ask if I would!

I also teach a variety of creativity and soulful workshops that help people find the artist within themselves. Prior to living in Arizona I never in a million years considered myself to be an artist. It took encouragement and the belief that Joanne West had in me to realize and tap into that side of myself. To this day I will always be grateful for that gift from her.

My art is fluid, it changes with each new endeavor. I tend to have a bit of ADD when it comes to my creations as well, meaning I will create something in one medium and may never return to that medium again - at least not in the same way.

When people ask me "Who are you?", I would have to say above all else, I am an artist. The act of creating touches upon every facet of my life.

If opportunity doesn't knock, build a door.
- Milton Berle

 

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"There are no great things, only small things with great love. Happy are those."
- Mother Teresa

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Life's more amusing than we thought.
-Andrew Lang

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All that we are is the result of what we have thought. The mind is everything. What we think, we become.
- Maharishi Mahesh Yogi

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Here is the test to find whether your mission on earth is finished: If you're alive, it isn't.
-Richard Bach

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Knowledge is structured in consciousness. The process of education takes place in the field of consciousness; the prerequisite to complete education is therefore the full development of consciousness -enlightenment. Knowledge is not the basis of enlightenment, enlightenment is the basis of knowledge.
- Maharishi Mahesh Yogi