Independent Artist

Meet Elsa Sanchez of Mochuelo by Elsa. Learning to sew and creating whimsical and wise owls brought Elsa happiness and healing.

Each issue of Under the Moonlight is a fantastical journey. The amazing illustrations (my 12 year old’s choice of adjective) gently guide the reader on a journey through nature. The content is a nuanced balance between scientific facts and tales of fairies and gnomes who live in Firefly Hollow.

Ceramics are both beautiful objects and a domestic necessity used in intimate ways. “I love the function of the pieces I create. You are able to eat out of them; you put your mouth to them,” muses Wendy Eggerman of Functional Heirlooms. “How many forms of art do you put your mouth to? How many forms of art do you interact with on that level?”

For Emma Crutcher of Cool Trash in South Minneapolis other people’s trash is literally her treasure.  Emma discovered the Precious Plastic project, which was founded in 2013. This project hosts a suite of open source plans to build machines to recycle plastic on a small scale. “This movement challenges us to think about plastic as a valuable resource for building and creating,” explained Emma

Rebekah is a full-time resin artist who incorporates natural materials found along Lake Superior’s shores and northern forests to create distinctive Minnesota art. Birch bark is one of her favorite mediums.

From her own botanical paintings to the coaching she provides artists and artisans, Lara Cornell challenges her community to consider the long-term impact of their work. Impact includes eco-impact, social justice, equality, biodiversity, and economic questions. Lara disrupts the myth of the starving artist in order to empower creatives to found sustainable, economically-sound businesses that make the world a little more fair.