Pardon our digital dust here; we've been working hard on getting the real-world gallery ready! We're looking forward to our grand opening on August 26 and 27. Please come join us, meet the local creative collective, watch the artists at work,

From the East Portland Neighborhood News, October 21, 2017 (original article here)

Arte Soleil is proud to be participating alongside other local businesses in the yearly Little Boxes holiday spree! "A city-wide shopping event and prize raffle on Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Sunday. For the three days after Thanksgiving welcome

Arte Soleil is having its first Open Mic Night on Saturday January 27th. We encourage our local musicians to take advantage of this opportunity to be seen and heard! All ages are welcome. We'll be hosting plenty more open mic nights and

Coffin Purses by April Degele In the last few years, I’ve had my fair share of tragedy. While I was floating in the blackest of pools, I looked up. What I saw was my own beauty and potential in total darkness. Coffins

by Megan Yates and Variable X/0 February is almost here! As Valentine’s Day approaches, people’s thoughts turn to the ideas of romance. At Arte Soleil, we want to help everyone in the community celebrate love in all its forms. Whether you’re single

Judith Ashley is one of our cherished creatives at Arte Soleil.  Judith is the author of The Sacred Women’s Circle series, romantic fiction that honors spiritual practices that nourish the soul and celebrates the journey from relationship to romance. As part

by Sarah Raplee I am an avid reader. Many of us have at least one “Keeper Shelf” of books that we cherish. Mine holds a copy of Herbert the Lion my father brought me from England when I was a little

by Ariana Lopez Cherish • to hold or treat as dear; feel love for ∙ to care for tenderly; nurture. Arte Soleil is wrapping our community in a warm blanket of support in self-expression and holding space for us to really be

by Robin Casey In order to properly celebrate women, we have to celebrate ALL women - not just women who fall into arbitrarily constructed guidelines of what "is" or "is not" acceptable womanhood. There are so many other facets of womanhood

By Robin Greene-Jacobs Like many female artists, I have struggled through the years with the vision I have for myself vs the expectations of the world. I am expected to be a certain way but I tend not to fit. And

By Nancy Tingley The thought of “why I create” has never come to my consciousness. Creativity is just what I do. If it was taken away from me, I wouldn’t be who I am. I did have a thought a few

by Peter Fennell Creative Souls tend to be empaths: highly sensitive people who feel everything often to the extreme and struggle in intellectualizing those feelings. We can feel the energy of others, negative or positive. And we tend to take on

By Robin Barnstead-Long Finger painting, drawing, macaroni art, modeling clay-sculptured dinosaurs and pinch pots, colorings inside and outside the lines, story writing, neighborhood talent shows, school plays, and musical instruments… we were encouraged by our teachers and caregivers to create, starting

By Brice Maki What is consciousness and how does it interact with us, how does it mend to our surroundings, and how do you define it? To me, the consciousness is a very fluid like aura that has the ability to

by Kris Bella Bring forth

by Ariana Lopez Here I stand, in these times of much fire: warmth and destruction, with sparks that flicker into the night sky and fireflies that glow in the rich vast depths of my soul, revealing to me that within the

by Pete Fennell Synergy /ˈsinərjē/  noun: "The interaction or cooperation of two or more organizations, substances, or other agents to produce a combined effect greater than the sum of their separate effects." When Kris and I began Arte Soleil, we both had a

by J. Variable X/0 Since we’re talking about evolution and growth, let’s consider an important but uncomfortable element of the process: failure. Not the irked disappointment one feels when a painting doesn’t turn out quite right, or when one can’t get a

by Linda Cox Art, by definition, is the act of creating something from nothing, or something that has never been seen before. Growth is eminent because the gift inside will scream for expression. An artist grows because life forces them to

by Heather Michet My “art” started with Paint By Number kits waaaaay back when.  They were so linear, so predictable…and very ugly. Curiosity, a belief in lifelong learning and personal growth, have brought my creativity a long way from those pre-outlined boards

by Betsy Anderson   I've had my hands on cameras throughout most of my life. From my sister's Fisher Price Kodak, to my current Pentax KX. The cameras have varied in different sizes, brands, and even colors. My favorite thing about cameras

by Robin Casey (Roz) Growth is a really challenging topic to write about. It's broad, it's subjective, and it's incredibly personal. Growth can come in many forms, and can mean different things to those who occupy its space. For me, growth

by Megan Yates Artists today are both blessed and cursed with the world of social media. Platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and personal websites make artwork readily accessible to the public. In this day and age, we have the ability

by Robin Barnstead-Long Sweet, rough, innocent, bitter, soft, bold, timid, proud… all words that can be used to describe a voice.  But what if you don’t feel as though you have one? What if someone took away your voice? What if

by Kris Bella I am so very humbled. As an artist, I understand how the creative process can be so freeing. It can take one to another place and time. As an art therapist, I understand the health benefits of creating art,

By Pete Fennell and Kris Bella The Universe has a way of drawing people together to create connections and inspirations. Over 30 years ago, there was a sliding door. That door has led us to this point in time. Along that

by Kris Bella I am so thankful for the individuals from the community who have consistently been present for Arte Soleil's growth! Brenda R. is one of those people. She learned about us from Lents Gilbert, the church from whom we

by Jessica Simpkins The sun is shining hard and bright now, washing out our familiar green and grey Portland palette, melting the tar along SE Division and Powell. As I wait for the traffic signal to turn, our star burns through my

by Heather Michet Sometimes making art is like picking berries.  You just don’t know at the start of it all what magical gifts will present themselves. I was gathering my mega pounds of blueberries this morning to supply the freezer with my

by Judith Ashley August is Romance Awareness Month, and there is lots to see and do at Arte Soleil because The Creatives have put together an awesome display of items for anyone in your life you love... including yourself! Art, jewelry, and books that have a happily-ever-after are on sale through Labor Day weekend! To give you a bit more information, as the author of several of the books known as romantic women's fiction, let me tell you about The Sacred Women's Circle series. Each novel of the seven books features one member of The Circle as she faces the types of challenges many of us have: domestic violence, single parenting, recurrent breast cancer, death of spouse, homelessness, rape, etc. These women change their lives and find the love that has previously eluded them. On their individual journeys, these women rely on specific spiritual practices drawn from earth-based traditions and several religions to sustain them as they face obstacles and challenges in finding their soul-mate. Learn more about me, the series, and each of the women at JudithAshleyRomance.com. However, I'm not the only author who has a book or two on sale. Love and Magick is an anthology of six short stories by Diana McCollum, Sarah Raplee, and Judith Ashley. Once Upon A Time... ... in worlds where talismans wield power, spells enslave or protect, and troublesome ghosts are captured for humane relocation, three intrepid authors spin mystical stores of romance. Alongside strong, daring heroines, you'll fall in love with an enchanted prince intent on holding onto his humanity, a tough cowboy who has locked away his wounded heart, and a spirit-hunting geek whose motto is "Ghosts are people, too!", and three more irresistible heroes.

by Robin Barnstead-Long Love is in the air. How fitting for Romance Awareness month, that my husband and I celebrated our 9th wedding anniversary on August 8. Did you know that August is among the top four most popular months to

by Robin Casey As creative people, we are all inspired by someone or something in our life that we can probably credit with lighting that creative spark for us. That inspiration will show up in what we make, how we think,

by Jessica Simpkins “All other holidays are in a more or less degree connected with conflicts and battles of man’s prowess over man, of strife and discord for greed and power, of glories achieved by one nation over another. Labor

by Nancy Tingley Going on vacation to a foreign destination took me away from the over stimulation of my everyday existence and gave me a new perspective on life. I’m writing this as I fly home from visiting family in Norway.

By Kris Bella “There is immense power when a group of people with similar interests gets together to work toward the same goals.” ― Idowu Koyenikan In celebrating Arte Soleil's one year anniversary, Pete and I knew we needed to bring neighbors

It's wonderful when an event goes well

By Jessica Simpkins My grandma and I sat together on the daybed in my grandparents’ guest bedroom and looked at the jewelry she kept in boxes, which were stuffed in black, heavy-duty 50-gallon trash bags under the bed to disguise its

by Robin Barnstead-Long HALLOWEEN IS COMING!!! No, this is not the All Hallow's Eve edition of the Arte Soleil blog post, but I do have to say I'm rather excited about this time of year! I have been trying to put

By Pete Fennell I have been a songwriter for 40 years. I have crafted hundreds upon hundreds of lyrics and poems. I have recorded numerous songs, but the perfectionist side of me won't allow them to be released. In my basement,

by Brice Maki I’ve lost my time again, and it begins to unravel into the infinite collapse of the veil space. The multifaceted face of the creator looks upon me through the infinite holes in my own perception. Where is someone

by Robin Casey Outside of my art life, I'm a goatherd. There are two things that make me happiest in life, and that is making art and petting goats. Why goats? Honestly -- Why not? There is something truly beautiful about

by Kris Bella I am an owner of Arte Soleil. I am also an artist, art therapist, mother, wife, advocate, community mobilizer, neighbor, daughter, sister, aunt, niece, friend, supporter, voter, citizen, healer, teacher. When looking at ourselves in the wholeness and

by Jessica Simpkins In celebration of Little Boxes PDX, here is an origami box design for the precious little gifts you’ll be wrapping for your loved-ones. We look forward to seeing your beloved faces here at Arte Soleil this weekend for

by Nancy Tingley What does writing about food have to do with the creative process? Plenty. This time of year, with the holidays in all directions, food seems to be a major contributor to the festivities, and a binder that

Author Judith Ashley shares a bit of her inspiration as she invites her readers to visit Arte Soleil to get some of their own inspirations.

by Robin Casey In one of my previous blog posts, I spoke about my feelings of being lost and directionless. I've been feeling both artistically restless and blocked lately. I have projects on hold, it's the end of the year, and

by Judith Ashley Hi, I’m Judith Ashley, author of The Sacred Women’s Circle series, romantic women’s fiction that honors pagan spiritual practices that nourish the soul. My stories show you what life could be like if you had a place like

Take a moment to get to know this week's Featured Creative! Michael Clark grew up in Montana where he developed his passion for the outdoors, drawing, painting, and sculpture. He directed his life by unifying three main areas of interest; community,

By Lara Duren King I have rewritten this blog post several times because I find it difficult to express myself verbally, mostly because I have a complicated relationship with everything and have trouble conveying nuance in the way I feel it.

By Jessica Simpkins There are some days, weeks, or months when every healthy routine I’ve painstakingly fostered into existence is eviscerated- it’s like a kind of amnesia.  How did all of these pieces ever fit together? And I get the

By Heather Michet Heart Knitted Hat November became my favorite month last year. I’ve followed the Art Every Day Month (AEDM) group for several years: longingly and wistfully dreaming of actually joining in and doing the project some year. As the old saying

Meet this week's Featured Creative

Meet this week's Featured Creative and learn how to get involved with the 2019 VBC place making project at Arte Soleil. Synergy between the creative forces of woven ancestry and the freedom to breathe new life into story is what sparks

Lara Duren King After moving around a lot in my adult life, my family and I have settled in East Portland. Since being here I have cobbled together a clay studio. Over the years I have worked with a lot of

by Robin Barnstead-Long I try to find the hidden messages in everything I see. Not like, “What is this artist trying to say here?”… no, much bigger than that. More like, “What is Spirit trying to [teach/show] me?” And, once I