Welcome to Tammy VanAntwerp Art

A desire to hold space for myself and other women has been emerging, like a sapling growing into a tree, slow and steady. I’ve been tuning in and listening to that desire as I create my art and go about my daily routine. What has been showing itself is a space where we can come together share stories and create, similar to what our wise ancestral women did when they tanned hides for warmth and created tools from natural objects and centuries later when they gathered to quilt and exchange recipes all the while sharing their joys, hardships and sorrows.

In these times we no longer gather like that. We do more outside the home and share less. We get lost in a culture of “busyness” and feel a lack of belonging. The world is changing so fast it’s hard to keep up, political upheaval, climate change, racism, sexism and unchecked violence, just to name a few, can have us feeling fractured and lost. Some of us take action by protesting publicly, volunteering our time to causes important to us and make monetary donations. Or, if you are like me, you feel overwhelmed and tired of constantly having to fight for our rights and the rights of others who have been smashed down. I’m a white, middle aged woman with graying hair who much of the time feels invisible and ignored.

Some of us are dealing with fear, anxiety and depression and all of us though need a way to manage our lives. We need to find that safe space where we can communicate, create and share our stories, be ourselves with no apologies. A space where we will be heard, not ignored.

I am providing that space through sharing my stories, my art and my process. In turn I would love to hear your stories, see your art and have you share your processes with me, share with me how you have let your Inner Artist Out!