In this episode, I sit down with the wonderful, vibrant, joyful mixed media artist and teaching artist, Lori Siebert!Constantly experimenting with different styles and mediums feeds Lori's insatiable curiosity. She has a very whimsical design sense and loves to play with color to give each collection that she designs its own unique personality. She started taking private art lessons at the young age of 7 and continued to study art throughout high school. This lead to a degree in graphic design from the University of Cincinnati. She opened her own design firm just 3 years out of college in 1987. Her firm, Olika Studios, has developed branding and design programs for influential clients such as Target, Bath & Body Works, Nickelodeon and Universal Studios.Lori began the art licensing arm of her business 13 years ago and now works with several top manufactures in the gift and home decor industry. Her client list includes Demdaco, Creative Co-op, Studio M, Lang and many more. Her licensed products have been sold through many key retailers and small gift shops throughout the United States and Canada.She creates everyday, dividing her time between her home studio in Kentucky…sewing, sculpting, drawing, painting and the Olika Studio office… meeting with clients and developing concepts with her very talented design team. Her husband, Steve, is her business partner and she has two children… Kenzie (who is a designer and works closely with her mom at Olika) and Tanner (who is a mechanical engineer.) She also has two grandchildren who light up her life!!!In this conversation, we talk about:-Our shared love for pattern, color, fashion design and wearable art!-Our mutual love for multiple creative mediums -Lori's dream to explore more wearable art and more ceramics which she started taking classes in-Both being teaching artists and what goes into planning, dreaming and leading her classes and retreats, many of which she teaches in incredible international locations like Mexico, Greece and Italy. -The healing gifts of art making that we have experienced and that she has experienced with her students-Her current big project to purge and clean out her art studio-Our shared love of art journaling and how she loves to do art journaling about her travels working from photos that she takes-What role music plays in Lori's teaching and studio practice-Lori and I talk about two art books: "Start Painting Now: Discover Your Artistic Potential" by Emily Powell and Sarah Moore and "Expressive Flower Painting" by Lynn Whipple. I hope you enjoy our conversation!Emma.........You can connect with Lori on her website and see her amazing art and upcoming classes, retreats and conferences here: https://lorisiebert.com/Connect with Lori on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lorisiebert.studio/..........Emma Freeman, the host of The Exuberant Artist Podcast, is a multi-disciplinary artist, writer and teaching artist in Wisconsin. She has a contemplative, joyful approach to art making and loves working with repurposed materials including textiles, fibers, and old books she turns into art journals. She draws, paints, stitches by hand, writes every day, explores printmaking with nature and wearable art. She loves the intersections of creativity, philosophy, mindfulness, self-care, mental health, storytelling and community care through art making practices. Emma teaches classes and retreats online and in person and runs an online art community called, "Cut From the Same Cloth." Emma is also a Highly Sensitive Person (HSP), sober and animal lover. Emma Freeman's website: https://www.emmafreemanart.com/Connect with Emma Freeman on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emmafreemanartist/
