Laura DuFrane Murphy

We’ve all learned over the last difficult years that life is precious and precarious, and nothing can be taken for granted.

Likewise, in 2010, a serious car accident moved me to create the life I truly wanted. I had set aside creative endeavors to raise a family and work, and I realized then that becoming who I was meant to be was not going to happen unless I made it happen myself.

I found a writing group and began writing poetry and creative fiction again after many years. I attended an art crawl, and met an artist, Deborah Foutch, who was teaching a class on getting back in touch with lost or blocked creativity. The effect of this class on my life cannot be overstated. After yearning all my life for the “talent” to be a visual artist, I discovered that, as with writing, it mostly takes doing the work and the talent will follow.

Since 2015, my poetry group has produced three poetry chapbooks, I have had several art shows, and have, to my endless wonder, sold many pieces that touched people in some way.

I discovered through my work that I am fascinated with the depth of our natural world, with layered meanings, the edges of things, the unexpected, and the sacredness of connection. I am especially inspired by the life of trees, the proximity of water, the changeability of light, and the capacity of the human soul. I work in acrylic paint, ink, watercolor, oil and chalk pastel, and charcoal, using collage elements, abstraction, symbolism, and intuitive techniques to allow my work to unfold in an organic way.