It’s so crazy synchronstic that my professional art journey side gig began five years ago today, when I commenced a goal to paint “a little bit” everyday. This is a video of me doing a happy dance five years ago when I sold my first painting. (Artist Natalie Eve Marquis in YouTube Video celebrating first painting sold)

Is it frivolous to paint and make art when so many awful things are happening in the world?

This is what Louise Fletcher and Alice Sheridan were talking about in episode 275 of Art Juice: Making Art in Messy Times. While their discussion addressed many valid aspects of finding balance during these times, it struck me that no one was talking about the energetic benefits of creativity and painting.

My take is that making art is not frivolous. It’s essential. Painting and other creative pursuits offer more than mere distraction; they provide a potent prescription for what ails us individually and collectively.

We Three Native American Painting Family by HonoringMotherEarth