Monika Seidenbusch, Vision Board, January 2011, 16 x 20 inches
I first met Monika Seidenbusch, an artist and painter, while exchanging Artist Trading Cards (ATCs) a few years ago. I remember being so taken by her superbly stylized portraits of women that I now proudly display one in my home. I love the rich jewel-like tones, the fine details and gorgeous textures of her work. I’m in awe of the way she transforms seemingly simple subject matter into something extraordinary, magical and poetic. To get a glimpse of what I mean, you can visit her website Kaleidoscope Studio. If you’re in town, you can catch her show “Every Woman a Princess” at Rothwell Gallery which is on June 1-13, 2011.
With Monika’s wealth of creative knowledge, skill and vast life experience, I knew full well that hers would be an amazing vision! I’d never seen her collage work much before so it was a treat to see her skilfully put together the most images I’ve ever seen a student put together in under 2 hours! Her extensive reflections regarding her dream chalet give rich insight into the process and mind set of creating a vision board. Without further ado, I give you: Monika…
Monika Seidenbusch
Monika, what’s your background?
My educational background is in agriculture; I’m also a trained interior decorator. My real passions lie with the visual arts and piano. As a young girl, I was already visiting art galleries by myself and dreamt of painting figures, very large paintings of figures and bold abstracts as far back as I can remember. I always kept myself busy drawing and painting, mostly with water colours. In my teen years, I started taking oil painting classes at a night school in Germany and later took part in a number of workshops in various art media. I’m a professional full-time artist painting in acrylics and mixed media figurative and abstract work.
What attracted you to the vision board workshop?
It was already in my nature to “gather” ideas for things that I wished for. I have a vision box or “dream box”, the size of a shoe box, with ideas cut out for home decorating, fabric swatches, room designs, even a rhinestone cat collar for our next cat. When I saw the movie The Secret, there is a segment in the movie that talks about the power of visualization and gives an example of the use of a vision board to help materialize wishes through the law of attraction. So, I thought I’d like to some day put all my ideas on a board, but felt too self-conscious to actually do it. When I noticed a vision board workshop being offered by Michelle Casey, I thought this is my opportunity to create one, for me it was all about the purpose of the board, rather than making it a real art project.
What was your dream for your vision board?
The dream for my vision board is to build a beautiful Chalet-type house, the type I used to see in the mountains in Austria. This house will have a large studio in which I can work and give workshops and it will also have a gallery, the Kaleidoscope Studio Gallery, for my art and art shows. It will also have a home library, a separate office and garage/workshop for my husband. I also see a Border Collie dog and a Bengal cat, two breeds I have been actively researching.
Did you already have a dream in mind before the workshop or did that slowly occur to you during the class?
I already had these dreams and had been gathering some information already, such as house plan ideas etc.. What occurred to me during the workshop was the fact that I am so very much drawn to beautiful architectural details and warm browns and creams in a home, so quiet and restful.
What did you think of the visioning process?
Although I had these dreams, I never “meditated” on them and found this part at the beginning of the workshop very enlightening. The music was peaceful and may have helped to quiet my mind. You know I saw the type of window I wanted in my studio and I saw a hummingbird outside the window. When Michelle in her calm voice asked us to open the door to our dream, I walked into our foyer in the new home and put my keys on the dresser, the dog and cat coming over to greet me. The phone was ringing in the office.
How did you feel about the collaging process?
The collaging process was a lot of fun. I had a ball tearing out pictures and quotes to match my dreams and quickly realized I was not going to have enough time to think through an artistic looking composition, so I just let the idea of an art project go completely and started cutting and gluing as fast as I could. There was something very satisfying about cutting and pasting, perhaps it brings out the child in me. I have collaged art projects before and had carefully thought about the composition and colour theme and placement of interesting elements before. I had produced a body of work in collage/mixed media. However, I did not use pictures in my collage work. I discovered that it’s easier for me to explain to others what my dreams are; it gave my husband an idea as well. The other day when we were out driving he pointed out a beautiful interlocking brick driveway and said he would love to have something like that for a driveway and walkway around our house. This dream is not just for me it’s for my husband and family as well. After having a family, and my husband and I having various interests, we know what we want in a house and which rooms are most important to us. It clarified the goal of a house and studio as more of a mutual dream.
Did you feel the vision board is a good tool/touchstone for visualizing your dream?
I think it is if it’s going to be shared with someone else. It also puts the dream as a snapshot in your mind of what you want; it gives you an immediate picture for anyone looking at it.
Where is your vision board now?
Ever since I brought it home, it’s been leaning against a wall in the bedroom. It’s the first thing I see in the morning and the last thing at night. Even when I have something completely different on my mind, I could glance up at the vision board and think of something about it, lately I’ve been thinking about front doors…
Do you see yourself creating another vision board in the future?
This dream is so big and has many facets to it that at the moment I can’t see myself concentrating our thoughts and finances on any other big dreams for a while. I do have other dreams, such as travelling more and perhaps getting involved again as an International Red Cross disaster assistant, something I trained for in my late teens in Germany and have kept up my first response training for.
Thank you for asking me these questions for your blog. As you can see there are sometimes many layers to a dream and often times they weave into the dreams of others or are merely aspects of a personality that are trying to materialize. And they will… First there is the asking, then the believing, then the knowing that it will happen, then trusting that it’s on its way… Hold on to that faith.
Wow, this girl writes as beautifully as she paints! The most phenomenal thing for me about Monika’s board is in the sharing of her dream… with her husband and family. It’s like, as a result, the vision never ends; it gets to grow and become richer with the input of people she loves. A vision board doesn’t have to be centered on the self; its reach can be inclusive and create a nurturing environment for all involved in the “dreamer’s” vision. When viewed in this light, the construction of a vision board could be a wonderful family or couple-related activity.
Best to you with your studio/workshop/dream house chalet, Monika! I’ll be one of the first ones to visit your new studio and take a class. It was such a privilege to have you as a student; I’ve learned much from your thoughts. Thanks so much for sharing your vision board with us. Best with your show at Rothwell Gallery!
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