Post-Processing

There is so much about Faith Ringgold to fall in love with. Not only might you adore her oil and acrylic paintings, soft sculptures, prints, performances, or her story quilts, but you’re also bound to be inspired by her determination, persistence, and drive to empower the marginalized. Her life was spent not only creating art, but creating change. She recognized the doors opened by the Black women...

Have you ever wondered how some people seem to be endlessly creative while you’re just hoping for the tiniest spark of inspiration? No need to sit around waiting for a divine encounter with an ancient Muse, you can take steps today to unlock your creativity. In fact, the secret to being more creative is to let your subconscious do the work. Let inspiration strike while you’re busy doing other thin...

This episode is out to solve a mystery: who really is Jim Goldberg? For someone currently alive who gives plenty of interviews and publishes memoir-style photo books, we still can’t shake the feeling that we are kept at an arm’s length from really understanding Jim. Join us as we chat about Jim Goldberg, the Magnum photographer who engages in “total documentation” of his subjects. His use of colla...

The 60s ushered in a pursuit of heightened awareness. Not only was there a rise in the consumption of psychedelics, but the study of phenomenology advanced due to our curiosity about lived experiences shaping the individual’s view of the world. Scientists were developing technologies for mapping brain activity and tracking the various ways people process visual stimuli. We recognized our own perce...

Anna Atkins might be becoming more of a known quantity, but it took concerted effort by some of her superfans after many years in obscurity to put her in the spotlight. We don’t know much about her personal life, but we do know one important detail: she is the first person to create a photography book EVER. (Kind of a big deal.) But for her, it was simply a way to share her passion of illustrating...

What does the ebb and flow of artistry look like in the real world? How do you know it’s time to return to the things you set down? How do you get back to the love of creating? Join as Amy talks about this and more with lifestyle photographer Summer Murdock. They tackle turning the camera on themselves, how to live as an “awe collector”, giving ourselves the gift of joyfully experiencing the world...

This month in The Art Lab, we study the man, the myth, the legend: David Bowie. Tbh it’s rather daunting to talk about him on this podcast and then create art inspired by him. How do you properly address and be inspired by such an icon? Listen in as Amy and Chris talk about the life and art of David Bowie, the circuitous route he took to fame, and how we can take our own cues from his life as we m...

Martin Parr was a prophet speaking in parables, giving biting commentary on life in England wrapped in an entertaining story for the masses. Those with ears, let them hear. Except make it comical. because according to Martin, “if you don’t laugh, you’d cry.” Through this lens (pardon the pun), we witness reality amplified. Martin was quite clear that photography was highly therapeutic for him, and...

Welcome to another episode of Brainstorm Buddies where Amy and her Marco Polo brainstorm buddy Cami Turpin bring their private conversations out into the public. We are declaring 2026 The Year Of Looking Backwards To Determine How To Move Forwards. Maybe not the catchiest of titles, but one that keeps proving essential for this year in particular. Cami Turpin is a fine art photographer living, tea...

Ruth Asawa: sculptor, painter, potato-print-maker. Nothing was off-limits to Ruth, and she even created a commercially sold textile simply by repeating a stamp with her college’s name on it. Although best known for her wire sculptures, Ruth has much to teach us about living an artful life, pushing through personal tragedy and adversity, and the beauty of dreams deferred. Amy Elizabeth is an artist...

From perfectionism to imposter syndrome, we face all sorts of mental hurdles when trying to give form to our creativity. Tune into today’s episode as Amy and Chris tackle your questions, talk about the hurdles they face, and how they move through them. Leave feeling inspired and empowered to make 2026 your Year of Creativity! Amy Elizabeth is an artist and film photographer living in Minneapolis,...

A major player in Dada and Surrealism, Man Ray’s first love might have been painting, but we know him for his photography. He embraced the experimental and helped elevate photography to a fine art. He stumbled upon techniques like solarization and the rayograph, which remind us to drop our expectations and welcome the “mistakes” that happen during the process. Listen in today as Amy and Chris talk...

Walk into a Kinko’s to use a copier…but make it art? That’s exactly how this month’s artist, Pati Hill, got her start—through xeroxing everyday household objects. What started as the role of family historian, turned into framed pieces on gallery walls. Why objects? Why a photocopier? And what makes something appeal beyond the reach of our own homes? Listen in today as Amy and Chris talk about usin...

Just as exciting as studying an artist whose work is inspiring, is studying an artist with strong artistic philosophies. The advantage of contemporary artists is the myriad YouTube videos, articles, and podcasts we can find them on. We get to know them not only as artists, but as people with a real lived experience. Cig Harvey (b.1973) is one of those gems who is generous with her time and her har...

The man who gave us “good artists copy; great artists steal", “art is a lie that makes us realize the truth,” and "learn the rules like a pro, so you can break them like an artist" is none other than Pablo Picasso. His artistic philosophy was on point and it led him to shock and offend people time and again in order to pave the way for what would become the new norm of modern art. He had urgency,...

He might be the greatest landscape photographer of our time, and I can almost guarantee that studying his work will inspire you to pick up your camera. In this episode, Amy clues us into Michael Kenna’s artistic practice, philosophy, and the road that led him to seek out these moments of meditative solitude. Engaging with Michael Kenna’s work brings up so many topics even beyond the image itself,...

Although the florals and recipes of The Voynich Manuscript served as sources of inspiration for Amy’s final project this month, it was ultimately the indecipherability of the text that spoke the most. The fact that it can’t be decoded by modern humanity means it remains pure and lives on in unknown ways. But what about texts we do understand? How does our continual reading and adaptations of these...

We all hit roadblocks in life from time-to-time, where the once-familiar becomes untenable and we recognize that life as we know it is no more. These are the moments in which we often crumble, and although the crumbling might be inevitable, we end up with a choice: we can resign ourselves or we can take the pieces and build something new. Bisa Butler’s “pivot or die” moment occurred when the mediu...

One of the most-often questions that comes my way is: how do you find the time to create? On this episode, Chris and Amy answer your questions and talk about their strategies for finding the time to create, how to gather inspiration, setting goals, and why living life through the viewfinder isn’t so bad after all. Amy Elizabeth is an artist and film photographer living in Minneapolis, MN. She runs...

“‘My work isn’t technical, it’s just vibes’-what Linda McCartney should have said, but didn’t”-Amy Elizabeth With a maiden name of Eastman and a married name of McCartney, did Linda become famous because of the people around her? (Sorry internet trolls, Linda wasn’t actually of the Kodak Eastmans). Spoiler alert: Amy thinks Linda is a true artist in her own right. Listen in as Amy becomes a Linda...

It’s hard to put your money where your mouth is. This month, after some really terrible film images, Amy remembered she’s “not a film snob”. And this is the story of how iPhone and digital images landed on her permanent Instagram feed. But if you want to hear some more details of said story, listen about evaluating the proper tools the job, and learn how to stop overcomplicating and get out of you...

The Great Depression was almost 100 years ago and it serves as a reminder that the more things change, the more they stay the same. It was during this era that our artist for the month, Elizabeth Olds, spoke against the injustices of society, empowered women, illuminated the ugliness of capitalism, and taught the next generation the importance of art and creativity. How does one take all of this a...

This month instead of studying an artist, we’re studying a mystery (spoooooky). If you haven’t heard of the Voynich Manuscript, you’re in for a real treat. This 600 year old work of art is written in an unknown language, containing unknown plants, mechanisms, charts, and mixtures. If something contains nothing that is known, how is it NOT a hoax? Great question. Maybe it is, but despite all the se...

Welcome to today’s conversation with Scott Erickson, painter, illustrator, live performer, and author. I was first introduced to Scott’s work circa 2018 when our church hung illustrations he had made in our Fellowship Hall. His work, although often using Christianity mythology as his jumping off point for processing life’s harder lessons, is especially known for featuring the sacred and profane. H...

We asked you to ask away and you did! Well, actually, you sent statements more than actual questions, but we turned them into questions and answered them here. (Okay, so we only got through a couple, but it's a start!) On this episode, Chris and Amy cover how to start, how to finish, and the one word that's the key to it all. Whether you're tackling personal work or a client project, this conversa...