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This week, mixed media artist Marjolaine Walker shares her story with us – take it away Marjolaine…

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Hi, my name is Marjolaine Walker. I’m a mixed media artist from Ottawa Canada. I’ve been working in the creative industry for eleven years now but didn’t discover my true passion until three or four years ago. I’m the owner of Twelve Stones Scrapbooking (and Art Studio) which is a travelling store. I also teach out of my studio.  For a long time I desired to be a teacher and designer but never thought I was good enough so I hid myself behind the retail front where I figured I belonged. I never told anyone about my dream because it felt too out of reach. Two things happened a few years ago to get me to where I am today. The first was taking a mixed media class taught by Donna Downey. It was there that I fell in love with mixed media and I became free to be creative after Donna told me to stop thinking so much. I have a habit of over analyzing every little thing when I am creating so this was a huge eye opener for me! From there I taught a class only as a favour for a friend and discovered that not only did I enjoy teaching but people actually wanted to take classes from me. It took another two years for me to call myself an artist.

As a stay at home mother of four children I find it difficult to make time for art but I make it a priority because it’s important to me. During this season of life I don’t get to be artsy as much as I would like but these years with my children will be over before I know it so for now they come first.

I get my inspiration from my faith in God. Most of  my pieces have part of my heart on them. There’s often a much deeper meaning to my art than what is known or seen. It’s always my hope that my art encourages and inspires others. It warms my heart when my art deeply moves people and touches them in an amazing way.

I love to use all kinds of products and found objects on my projects.  My goal is to use up everything in my studio in a fun and creative way. I have accumulated so many treasures through the years and I don’t want them to go to waste. If you look closely you will often find costume jewelry as part of my art.

If I could change anything about myself as an artist, I would make myself more organized and tidy. My studio is almost always a disaster and it sometimes stifles my creativity. I waste precious time looking for things that are piled up on my five work tables. On the other hand, I prefer being creative over cleaning!

I love to travel and it is my dream to some day teach all over the world  but for now, I stay a little closer to home. My art friends are a diverse group from around the globe and I cherish my time with them twice a year. It’s an awesome community to be part of. As a designer member of the Craft and Hobby Association I am part of a special family who encourages me every step of the way. As a teacher and artist, my top priority is to help others to believe that they are good enough and creative enough to make their artistic dreams a reality.

My art can be seen on my blog: www.twelvestonesscrapbooking.blogspot.ca

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