When Art Finds Its People

For the fourth year in a row, Raymond and I returned to Loveland, Colorado, for the annual Sculpture in the Park show.

Created by artists for artists, it is the largest and one of the most esteemed outdoor sculpture shows in the country. Run by a giant posse of enthusiastic volunteers, the juried show brings together top-notch sculptors from around the world.

We arrived a few days early so I could spend time at the foundry, to oversee the final finishing and patinas on bronzes before the show. We reconnected with old friends, made new ones, talked art and bronze and life… and sent more than a few sculptures off into the world with people to love them.

But perhaps my greatest joy is simply witnessing the response. The spark in someone’s eyes when they meet Jake. A little critter cupped tenderly in someone’s hands. The personal stories people share with me. The unexpected hugs.

I spend much of my life alone in the studio making things. I’m learning how beautiful it is to stand on the other side of that process for a few days and receive the love coming back.

Full of gratitude and warm-fuzzies.

Jake found his Forever Home

Jake was the first sculpture I created after my father died from cancer. My intention was for him to be compelling and irresistible. I wanted him to touch people’s hearts. I didn't realize just how much that heart connection would spin into comfort and joy.

I cannot think of a more perfect place for Jake than in a healing environment. Through a partnership with Small Dog Realty, I was able to donate Jake to the Livingston HealthCare Foundation. He now sits near the surgery waiting area; a place where people often find themselves waiting, worrying, hoping and in need of comfort.

I’ve already heard so many heartening stories; people stopping to greet him, patients taking daily walks from their rooms to visit him, children sitting on the floor to talk to and hug him. One elderly gentleman was seen sitting next to Jake, his hand resting on Jake's head, while his wife was in surgery.

The Foundation hosted a lovely reception for Jake and I. Emotion wound through my words as I tried to express what Jake's presence in the hospital means to me. He is not simply a bronze dog. He is a companion.

May he bring comfort, connection and smiles to all who pass by. 💛

Raymond recorded my brief remarks at the reception celebrating Jake. I stumble and ramble a bit, but if you'd like to hear the story behind him, You can watch my talk here:

Laura has a beautiful eye for putting together a show that feels soulful, curious, refined, and alive. Assemblage became a rich conversation between materials, stories, textures, and perspectives - and it was a joy to participate alongside such a strong gathering of women artists here in Montana.

The hat was custom made for my Aunt Nora during her years in Texas. The first time I tried it on - decades ago now - she smiled and said it was meant for me someday.

Occasionally an artwork refuses to let you leave without it. Such was the case with this beautiful porcelain bird lamp by Kelly Stevenson.

Touched By Travelers

The obligatory Bison Bench photo before our quick trip to Seattle to celebrate our dear friend Heidi’s stage acting debut. I still smile knowing this o’l buffalo continues greeting weary travelers arriving home to Montana. I love the shiny places in his patina, worn smooth by the touch of countless passing hands.

There are so many stories tucked inside this sculpture - from carving the original in black walnut to the long journey into bronze. Watching travelers unconsciously wear parts of the patina smooth through touch reminds me how artworks continue evolving long after they leave the studio. Perhaps I should host small studio storytelling evenings to share some of the hidden journeys…

Fire Horse

There are moments when something opens… and there is no going back to the way it was before.

On stage…

Vú Ja Dè was one of those nights - an evening of artists gathering without script, creating in real time, held only by presence and trust.

“Paint and tears flowing - my edges felt edgeless - my heart soft, expansive and powerful.”

From my journal…

Painting while sharing energy, love, loss, presence…it felt like riding a Fire Horse bareback.
Gentleness. Power.

Moments barely hanging on - knowing I could be thrown, and also feeling the horse and I in flight.

I had to trust memory carried through lifetimes of making while immersed in the energy of the audience - the energy of my dear friends on stage and my own emotions.

Prayer and play.

I wasn’t just painting a horse - I was cracking something open in myself. The veil was thin. I became devotion.

Now I am back in the quiet of the studio. Back in the stable. Muscles still trembling from the ride.

The painting is here with me and I am listening for what it wants now.

Vú Ja Dè was a threshold night. An activation. A transformation. Holding intense presence. Feeling everything. No sense of time

Flow - and flowing.

Offering and receiving. Emergence and impermance revealed.

For those who feel curious to witness the evening as it unfolded, the livestream is still available here → Vú Ja Dè event photos courtesy of Yarrow Kranner

The Joy of Connection

One of my favorite things about attending shows is witnessing the reactions and connections people have with my work.

Raymond and I always invite visitors to touch and hold the sculptures. You can easily see how much they want to. There’s something special about that moment of contact - when bronze, story, and spirit meet in a pair of small hands or a curious heart.

Sculpture in the Park

There’s a special energy in the air each year at Sculpture in the Park; artists, collectors, friends, and families gathered in celebration of creativity and connection.

One of my favorite parts is simply being there - surrounded by bronze, laughter, and stories - reconnecting with familiar faces and meeting new kindred spirits.

Grateful for the opportunity to share my work and heart under the big Colorado sky.

Opening Night: Zen Rabbits

A handful of my Zen Rabbits hopped into the world for this show. Quiet companions born from charcoal, breath, and the stillness between thoughts. Each one carries a whisper of calm, a moment of pause in a complex world. I drew them during mornings wrapped in silence, when my mind softened and the hand simply followed my heart. Seeing them on the wall - simple, tender, unguarded - felt like watching peace take shape.

Delightful Evening celebrating autumn and the arts at my studio...

For a few moments near the middle of the evening there was a slight lull in the amount of people surrounding me during which I heard Brad’s deep rich voice as he sang “Burning Ring of Fire.” Ah…my bones simultaneously melted and skipped with happiness. I excused myself, slipped out the door and relished the beautiful autumn evening Momma Nature provided as a stage for the talented friends who shared their magic at the mic.

The studio open house was a whirlwind with enthusiastic and curious guests fulls of questions and shares provoked by my creations and the beauty of this place and space. Raymond and I were so busy engaging with the few hundred people who showed up that we forgot to take photos. Thank you Kostas for capturing one of the savory slices of memories from a rare and special night graced with goodness.

Bhutanese Prayer Flags

For thousands of years, prayer flags have been created and hung to promote peace, compassion, strength and wisdom. Raymond and I brought these home from Bhutan.

Three prayer flags were raised in front of my studio one-year-to-the-day after Cliff’s death. Three more prayer flags were added on our first anniversary. Nine days later three more flags were raised one year after my mother’s death. The nine prayer flags danced through nearly two full years of sun and snow.

Released by air and wind, prayers and mantras sanctify and purify all-pervading space which becomes a permanent part of the Universe even as the flags fade. Life is replaced by new life. Prayer flags acknowledge the greater cycle which all beings are part of. I gathered the tattered and torn material before the elements scattered them to the ground. Precious pieces of the prayer flags have been dancing their way into my work… finding new life.

Studio Open House - come celebrate with us!

Saturday October 12

4-8pm

160 Hideaway Trail, Livingston, MT

Momma Nature is unfurling her regal autumn regalia - inviting me to open my doors and share the harvest. Several never-before-seen art series, little gems and giant creations will be revealed. Live music, fun gifts and the joy of gathering in this special place at the end of the road above our sweet little town and the Yellowstone River. Come and see us.

Memorable Easter Sunday

Raymond and I were honored to share Easter Sunday adventures on ice with legends Pat Callis and Conrad Anker. Pat is an 86 year old sprite who discovered the ice at Hyalite Canyon decades ago. He is a full time professor at MSU and inspires us all with his gumption and strength.

I highly recommend the documentary “Piton” about Pat Callis for inspiration.

Google Conrad Anker hours of articles (cover of National Geographic, TIME, Outside, etc. The stellar documentary movie Meru is one of our favorites.

Beautiful Moments

I love this bright, brilliant authentic being…! Kate Northrup came into my life last Fall where she continues to dramatically shift and change my world in profound ways. What an honor and pleasure to meet her in person. I soaked up her radiance recently while attending a workshop she presented in Miami.

Interviewed on the Lookout Podcast

Luke transformed his grandfather’s o’l Airstream into a recording studio. His mission to share inspiration via conversation powers him to pull his studio-on-wheels down Montana roads to create authentic connection and content. The windy afternoon we spent together in the silver egg hatched an episode that is candid, intimate and revealing…

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Journal

Wishing you the jolliest of holidays!!!

Perhaps some of you remember the santa carvings I did for Big Sky Carvers during my 20’s? Here is one I stained with pin-striped overalls like my grandfather used to wear as a gift for my mother decades ago.

Walking Down the Aisle

During the few months leading up to our big day, I imagined the moment when Cliff would walk me down the aisle. I would lean into him as I’d done for the better part of my adult life. He would offer his never-in-a-gym bulging mountain man arm for me to wrap into. He would have said something “Cliffy” in that moment meant only for me but loud enough for the guests, the birds and the bears to hear. Whatever he uttered would have been unpredictable with the exception of the inevitable endearment “Honey” spoken like a punctuation point; laden and dripping with golden sweet richness.

Guests wrote on prayer flags and tied them to the Aspen tree under which Cliff and I would have begun the wedding walk together. Strips of wispy white cotton blasted prayers, love and grace which emboldened the steps I took alone.

Not alone.

Despite many kind offers to walk me down the aisle no one could have taken Cliff’s place.

Musical notes leapt from Leslie’s violin and danced with birdsong. I began the walk, seven years ago today.

Season's First Summit

BEAUTIFUL and stunningly memorable summit shared with a dear friend - AND a violinist and ballerina who performed on the summit.

Carrie Krause and Genevieve Tygstad-Burke perform on top of Blackmore Peak (see article here)

BIG "Little" Soren at the Eaglemount Playground

Years ago I created a very special palm-size bronze eaglet sculpture for Eaglemount - a near-and-dear-to-my-heart non-profit. The little sculpture was named after an inspiring youngster who lost his life to cancer. The “little eaglet who could” sculpture continues to help raise funds for Eaglemount. A few years later I was commissioned to create a large version of the little bugger for Eaglemount’s new playground. We visited recently for a community event when Raymond snapped this candid photo.

Sculpture in the Park

Declared by WOOD magazine one of “America’s Woodworking Greats,” Amber Jean was asked by the prime minister of Bhutan to carve an art piece for the retreat palace of the country’s king. Her bronzes are cast from carved wood, such as the life-size bison sculpture at the Bozeman International Airport in Montana. She was voted one of the “Top 25” out of 1500 artists from fifty-three countries at the ArtPrize Competition and Festival in Grand Rapids, Michigan. She is also one of ten women inducted into the Stetson Craftsman’s Alliance. Her work is featured on the Wood Sculpting TV series produced by DIY, and on the Oxygen Network Pure Oxygen show. Her palm-size animal sculptures cast in solid bronze are collected worldwide.

“Spring” - carved in wood and cast in a limited edition bronze

Encouraged by two of the talented artists who work at the foundry in Loveland (where my sculptures are cast in bronze) “Sculpture in the Park” is the largest juried bronze sculpture show in the states. Raymond and I will travel to Loveland next month for the show.

Bozeman Art Museum - "Sacred Roots" exhibit

What a beautiful show….!

Honored to be included in a show with artists such as Debbie Butterfield and others…