Our Presenters for A Year in Color

Alisha Wielfaert

Alisha Wielfaert is a coach who helps creatives, entrepreneurs, and seekers, going through transitions, align with inner wisdom to create flourishing businesses and lives in 6 weeks. She lives by the motto “We rise by lifting others”. She is the creator of the Yoke and Abundance Wise Women Podcast. Alisha spent 11 years as an award-winning internal wholesaler in the life insurance industry. Early in her career in corporate America Alisha became a 500-hour certified yoga teacher and went on to open her own yoga studio, Greensboro Downtown Yoga. While juggling a successful full-time job and running her own business Alisha discovered the tools she used to spark creative endeavors and bring mindfulness into her days were the very tools that made her most successful in all other aspects of her life. Alisha has been an entrepreneur for 8 years founding two successful businesses. She was recently awarded 40 under 40 by the Triad Business Journal. Alisha is currently studying "Failure as a Sacred Rite" and working on a book to help us navigate failure as a holy experience in the process of creating significance in our lives and businesses. She enjoys working with anyone who has a propensity to take action towards their dreams.

Yasmin Ali

I’m Yasmin Ali, a polymer clay specialist teaching online creative classes. About seven years ago, I started making jewelry using a variety of beads. It wasn’t until I discovered that I could make my own beads in the colors and patterns I wanted from polymer clay, that I knew this was the medium for me.

I’ve always had hobbies growing up and returned to learning more crafts when I moved to the UK. I believe that having something creative to do is a fantastic way of relaxing and resting your mind. Crafting really takes you away from the day-to-day stresses. It has certainly helped me at the end of the working day.

Alongside my teaching workshops, creating in the studio, and working on my business, I’m also a part-time bookkeeper. I do enjoy the balance of working with numbers and playing with clay! I live in Bedfordshire, UK, and am married with 2 young people. I enjoy walking, reading, baking, and traveling.

Amanda Trought

I am Amanda Trought, a London Born Mixed Media Artist and have been creating and collaborating with a variety of artists around the world in group as well as solo exhibitions in London UK, Barbados, Montserrat. I have received Awards for my sculptures in the National Independence Festival of Creative Arts (NIFCA), and the Central Bank Crop Over Visual Arts Festival, Barbados for my sculptural art and textile wall hanging. I also had my work published in 3 books - Zen Doodles – Tons of Tangles, Zen Doodles – Oodles of Doodles, and 1000 Dog Portraits.

I love creating and use a variety of materials such as clay, fabric, recycled materials and collage, natural fibers, and dyes to create the art and tell a story that impacts the viewer through the use of color and texture. I am a firm believer in the positive impact that art and creativity can have on our health and wellbeing.

I curate an Arts in Health Network alongside writing for my website and blogs. I also produce weekly episodes for my Podcast and YouTube sharing aspects of art, creativity, interviews, and reviews.

Sue Young

I am Sue Young, a mixed media artist based in beautiful Cornwall, UK ( deep in Poldark country for those of you who watch the show!)

I trained in both Fashion/Textiles and Fine Art and I have had a long and varied career, including work as a glass engraver and also designing and making headdresses and accessories for a small bridal house . I have been running face to face workshops and sharing art skills and practice for many years now, organised a number of successful joint exhibitions and delight in bringing creative inspiration to all!

As a proud single mum of two amazing daughters but I can't pretend it wasn't a struggle at times, and although I never stopped learning and creating I also worked a LOT of hard, rubbish jobs on the side to get to where I wanted to be and keep a roof over!

I still work long hours, but I now work out of my studio in back of my own little gallery/gift shop and offer online lessons and courses sharing my skills and experience with others at all stages of their creative paths. It brings me so much joy to share and encourage creativity in others and I believe it is vital to us as humans to be able to express ourselves.

Amber Fife

Amber Fife lives on 4 wooded acres in South Jersey with her professor husband and homeschools her 4 children. With degrees in math and art, Amber found photography the marriage of the two.

After a decade of being in business and moving across the country, Amber felt something was missing, and she wanted to not feel crippled by anxiety. Her healing began in 2016 as she returned to her artistic roots and made time for creating on a regular basis.

Finding so much success in her own life, Amber began Women Create Weekly in 2018, a blog and online membership to help women find themselves again through watercolor painting. She enjoys running both businesses and finding life balance on a daily basis.

Louise Gale

Louise Gale is a British mixed-media artist, with a passion for color, nature, and mandala making. She creates in her art studio in southern Spain overlooking the sea with the Moroccan coastline in the distance. (it is heavenly). Louise's work is expressive, colorful, full of energy and she loves to share her techniques and inspiration with others through free resources, publications, and online classes.

Louise believes that nature is our medicine that helps us reconnect with our true selves, so her art is constantly inspired by the beauty that surrounds us in the natural world. She loves to combine the meditative process of mandala making with the healing power of nature in her work creating artworks called ‘Botanical Mandalas’. She published an art instruction book on the subject and a mandala coloring book too!

Louise also has a passion for exploring the healing power of color energy in art and life, so many of her offerings include color exploration, creating personal color palettes, and finding confidence in using more color in our creative life.

Anna Battle

I am Anna Battle and I am Shiny Happy Art! My mission is to share the joy of drawing and painting. An artist, art teacher, and author from Queensland, Australia, I share monthly painting workshops with people all over the world through my Shiny Happy Art Club. I am constantly inspired and sketch and paint almost daily, exploring new ways of drawing my memories and painting my life. Literally and metaphorically, I'm here to fill my book and help you fill yours!

Lee Clements

Hi, I’m Lee Clements, wife and mother to two grown sons, mixed media artist, art journaled, and art teacher living in Melbourne, Australia. I believe that we all have inherent creativity, and inspiring and encouraging others to find their voice through creative exploration and expression, regardless of experience or artistic ability, is deeply gratifying and is my passion.

For me, creativity is the perfect tool for tapping into my inner wisdom and I am a firm advocate for art journaling, in particular, as a tool for mental wellbeing. My art journal pages are a mixture of inner reflection, contemplation, and healing, as well as inspiring quotes, light bulb moments, and treasured memories. Incorporating personal symbology, I draw inspiration from the organic beauty of nature, the many facets of the human face, and the meditative process of mandalas. These inner explorations enrich and compliment my work on canvas.

“My art journal is the place where I can express myself honestly, unashamedly, unconditionally, thoughtfully, and playfully. It is the place that brings me back to center and grounds me. It is my place of comfort and healing, a place to explore and play, and foremost, a place where I can just ‘be’.

Anne Butera

Anne Butera is a self-taught artist who finds inspiration in the beauty of her garden and the magic of nature. She works primarily in watercolor but also loves challenging herself to try new things. She strives to seek out and celebrate life’s little joys and daily graces.

Anne writes the blog My Giant Strawberry; teaches in-person and online; and sells her art, designs, and fabric on her website and elsewhere on the web.

Anne’s paintings have been exhibited across the country and her art and writing have been published in magazines and in the book Botanica.

Larissa Russell

Larissa Russell is an Entrepreneur, International Best Selling Author, Speaker, Artist, and Coach, known as the Summit Queen. She is the Founder of Creative U Healing, an online coaching and learning platform that helps women step into their authenticity with the help of creativity, whether that be in business or life. Larissa is also the founder of Queer Voicez, a not-for-profit organization that shares LGBT+ stories to help LGBT+ youth, who have as much as an 8x higher suicide rate, know that they are not alone.
Larissa’s newest endeavor is Creative U Business, helping women build their creative businesses via summits and courses. Of which she has immense knowledge due to building her own creative business, Creative U Healing which helps women heal with creativity.

Chris Karpiak

Chris Karpiak is a mixed media artist and teacher who guides others to find self-expression through art and who enjoys finding creativity in the little things. Chris works intuitively through her art journals, painting, and mixed media pieces, letting feeling and emotion guide her. She enjoys making layers by using a variety of materials including paint, paper, fabric, and metal. Chris lives near Victoria, BC, Canada.

Jules Ostara

Julia Ostara, aka Jules, is an artist, author, explorer, farm girl, imperfectionist, mystic, mountain momma, playful painter, reverent, sweet spirit, and thrivivalist. Jules is the author of The Girl Who Dances With Delight. She also created the Heart of Life and Soul Songs inspirational oracle card decks.

Jules often greets the blank canvas as both a playground and a temple, a place to meet with the mystery, dance with the divine, wander through the wilderness, play with possibility, sing, pray, cry, celebrate, and co-create with the life force that flows through all. She enjoys hosting fun online courses encouraging others to explore the wonder and depths of their own curiosity and creativity.

Jules lives in the ancient Appalachians with twin boys, a guitar man, a feisty orange tabby cat, and many woodland creatures. She might appear to be a mundane, middle-aged, homeschooling mom. Yet, she is painting the story of a phenomenal natural woman serenading her soul while sharing and celebrating presence with kindred spirits.

Christa Forrest

Christa Forrest is a full-time artist specializing in pastel, oil, acrylic, and mixed media art. After spending 20 years in a finance career, she decided to follow her true passion and become a full-time artist. Christa spends her time sharing her passion with others, teaching others to be creative, and exploring the world's landscape recreating it onto canvas. Her work is a mixture of realism, exploration, experimentation, and pure fun.

She recently began creating a detailed and expressive Goddess series where she incorporates the divine feminine and illustrates the strength many women struggle to connect within their daily lives. “We remember to nourish our bodies with food and water but seem to forget to remember to nourish our souls.” Why do we find our inner selves starving and yearning for something more? Christa hopes to encourage everyone to unleash their inner Goddess through her artwork. A current project is in the works to help others unleash their creative soul through art, music, and creative expression. Helping creatives learn to nourish the soul, Creative Souls Art will explore creating from within and intuitively without the pressure of perfection and judgment.

Ildikó Karsay

I'm Ildikó Karsay, from Hungary, Budapest. Mother of 3 children. Loving creativity comes from my childhood I was curious and tried everything I met. I feel at home in acryl, watercolor, silk, batik, and oil too. Love to explore new mediums and materials. I know that art heals and I teach that the road is important not the result. I get inspiration nowadays from nature.

Colette Pitcher

Laugh, smile and paint! Taking a watercolor workshop with Colette Pitcher ensures a dose of all three while improving skills, techniques, and experience in painting. She has taught every age group to appreciate and enjoy art. She has been a full-time artist for the last thirty years and worked for several corporations in graphic design before that. Colette will focus on you finding your art dreams.

A life-long artist, Colette has appeared on HGTV’s “That’s Clever” and is the author of Watercolor Painting for Dummies and Acrylic Painting for Dummies, Wiley Publishing. Inspiring and encouraging others to try art, Colette owns the Showcase Art Center, a creative mini-mall featuring an art gallery, art supplies, framing, piano lessons, art classes, art studios, and is home to the Greeley Art Association. She is a signature member of the Colorado Watercolor Society. Colette’s paintings and sculptures are collected around the world. Her art is becoming more recognized across the nation resulting in her art being more collectible.

Heather Hoeps

I am Heather Hoeps, a German-Canadian intuitive collage artist, creative healing guide, and SoulCollage® facilitator with a background in art history and art therapy. I'm the creator of the 'Inner Compass Oracle' deck and the 'Inner Journey Tarot' deck which I conceived specifically for creative self-exploration and healing work.

Creative expression and personal development are tightly intertwined for me and the focus of my work is to guide people to access their inner resources, their inner beauty, and strength through working with a great variety of images and art materials intuitively and creatively.

I also run monthly online SoulCollage® groups for women from all over the world. Witnessing the light and beauty in the vulnerability and grace in my students never ceases to touch me deeply. I am so grateful for having found my calling and for sharing it with other beautiful souls.

Consie Sindet

Consie Sindet is a Creative Mentor and Teacher. She believes that we should always be learning, growing, trying, failing, and embracing the process. She's been teaching creativity in many forms for 13+ years and before online classes were even a thing, she taught in-person art classes to hundreds of women. Consie finds that art journaling is the most freeing way to express herself. She wants us all to know that we can find freedom, playfulness, and joy by slapping down some paint, gluing magazine pages to a piece of paper, adding doodling & marks, finding a quote that screams...'THIS IS HOW I FEEL TODAY!"...and calling it good enough.

Deanna Jinjoe

I am Deanna Jinjoe, a mixed media artist living in beautiful British Columbia, Canada. A few years ago I was dealing with some serious, chronic health issues. I was having migraines almost daily and intense back pain that made life very difficult. My doctor’s solution was to prescribe Tylenol 3’s by the hundreds. I was driven by this pain to seek a solution other than my doctor’s. One of the solutions turned out to be art.

I started playing and dabbling, taking a few online courses and what I quickly realized is that no matter how much physical pain I woke up with, I didn’t feel any pain once I sat down at my easel. It was the release from the pain while I played with my art that gave me hope I could someday move beyond that pain. I have heard so many stories about how people have used art for healing and changed lives that I am moved to get this message out to anyone who will care to listen.

My mission is to help people understand how a creative practice can change their lives and that ANYONE can create. You don’t have to be a Picasso to create work that is meaningful and beautiful to YOU. It is about the process and what the process gives you more so than the finished product. 

7 more presenters will be showcased in January.

Cynthia Hauk (MFA), founder of Mindful Creative Muse, is passionate about sharing simple, fun, calming, and inspiring mindful art activities to help busy creatives de-stress and express themselves. Many of Cynthia's signature Mindful Art activities can be done in as little as 5 minutes and can help creatives move through blocks or feelings of Imposter Syndrome. Her Mindful Creative Muse YouTube Channel and art videos have inspired creatives globally in more than 49 countries.