Creative Guts

This bonus episode is all about gratitude! Host Becky Barsi talks about the third annual Art ‘Round the Room, and the generous sponsors who helped make this event possible. Listen in to learn how you can help make a difference and celebrate creative exploration and expression!

Big THANK YOU to our Art ‘Round the Room Sponsors: 

• Blick Art Materials
• Attorney S. William Dahar II
• Manchester Distillery
• The law offices of Orr & Reno
• The Derryfield School
• NH Craft Club
• Concord Bee Company
• Market Basket

Stay connected with Creative Guts on Facebook and Instagram (@CreativeGutsPodcast), and check out our website at www.CreativeGutsPodcast.com

If you love what we do, consider making a donation! Creative Guts is a small nonprofit, and your support truly makes a big difference. Learn more and make a tax-deductible donation at www.CreativeGutsPodcast.com.

In this episode of Creative Guts, co-hosts Laura Harper Lake and Sarah Wrightsman sit down with Jordana Pomeroy, the director and CEO of the Currier Museum of Art. An art historian, author, and curator, Jordana started at the Currier in September 2024.

In this episode, we’ll chat about Jordana’s career at the Museum of Modern Art, National Museum of Women in the Arts, and more. Jordana shares what brought her to New Hampshire (spoiler alert: it was the Currier!) and how she thinks about the future of the Currier. We’ll also chat about Jordana’s book, the young adult novel titled Daring: The Life and Art of Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun.

Plan your visit to the Currier Museum of Art by visiting www.currier.org, and follow the museum's social media: www.instagram.com/curriermuseum and www.facebook.com/CurrierMuseum.

Find Daring: The Life and Art of Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun at your local bookstore or at: https://www.abramsbooks.com/product/daring_9781947440104/

Listen to this episode wherever you listen to podcasts or on our website www.CreativeGutsPodcast.com. Connect with us on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Discord. Creative Guts recently moved our newsletter to Substack, and you can find us at creativegutspod.substack.com. 

If you love listening, consider making a donation to Creative Guts! Our budget is tiny, so donations of any size make a big difference. Learn more about us and make a tax deductible donation at www.CreativeGutsPodcast.com. 

Thank you to our friends at Art Up Front Street Studios and Gallery in Exeter, NH and the Rochester Museum of Fine Arts in Rochester, NH for their support of the show!

In this episode of Creative Guts, co-hosts Laura Harper Lake and Sarah Wrightsman sit down with wildlife artist and author Matt Patterson! Matt is a wildlife illustrator and artist that specializes in turtles and other wildlife. He’s illustrated five books, including three with author Sy Montgomery, The Book of Turtles, Of Time and Turtles, and The True and Lucky Life of a Turtle.

In this episode, we’ll talk about everything from Matt’s adventures working with conservation organizations, the research that goes into his paintings, and the real-life turtles that inspire Matt’s work! We even talk a bit about the biggest threats to turtles and other creatures, and how you can help.

If you want to check out Matt’s work, you can find him online at www.mpattersonart.com and on Instagram and Facebook (@StoneRidgeArtStudios) at www.instagram.com/stoneridgeartstudios and www.facebook.com/stoneridgeartstudios.

Listen to this episode wherever you listen to podcasts or on our website www.CreativeGutsPodcast.com. Connect with us on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Discord. Creative Guts recently moved our newsletter to Substack, and you can find us at creativegutspod.substack.com.

If you love listening, consider making a donation to Creative Guts! Our budget is tiny, so donations of any size make a big difference. Learn more about us and make a tax deductible donation at www.CreativeGutsPodcast.com.

Thank you to our friends at Art Up Front Street Studios and Gallery in Exeter, NH and the Rochester Museum of Fine Arts in Rochester, NH for their support of the show!

In this episode of Creative Guts, co-hosts Laura Harper Lake and Joe Acone chat with Meg Locker, founder of NH Craft Club. 

Meg began NH Craft Club in early 2025 as a way for people to craft and connect through exploring new crafts. This inclusive and welcoming club hosts multiple events across the state each month, with projects like wreath-making, stamped tea towels, and building vision boards to name a few! 

In this episode, we chat about how NH Craft Club began, the art behind community organizing, social media's role in the club’s growth, the joy of being messy, and more! Meg also shares how her family has supported her in building this community, her love of travel, and her future plans for junk journaling. 

Learn more about NH Craft Club at www.nhcraftclub.com, www.instagram.com/nhcraftclub, www.tiktok.com/discover/nhcraftclub, and in the Facebook group https://www.facebook.com/groups/9559451004135403.

Listen to this episode wherever you listen to podcasts or on our website www.CreativeGutsPodcast.com. Connect with us on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Discord. Creative Guts recently moved our newsletter to Substack, and you can find us at creativegutspod.substack.com. 

If you love listening, consider making a donation to Creative Guts! Our budget is tiny, so donations of any size make a big difference. Learn more about us and make a tax deductible donation at www.CreativeGutsPodcast.com. 

Thank you to our friends at Art Up Front Street Studios and Gallery in Exeter, NH and the Rochester Museum of Fine Arts in Rochester, NH for their support of the show!

In this mini episode, we share exciting details about our upcoming third annual Art ‘Round the Room event. Art ‘Round the Room is a one-of-a-kind experience where adults get to play and experiment with a variety of art mediums at timed stations, guided by professional artists. It’s a rare opportunity for grown-ups to get creative, explore new materials, and have some fun!

This year’s event will be held on Sunday, November 16, 2025, from 1:00 pm to 4:30 pm at The Derryfield School, 2108 River Road, Manchester, NH 03104.

Tickets are $40 and can be purchased at www.creativeguts.org/events.

If the ticket cost is a barrier, please request a fee waiver by emailing [email protected].

Stay connected with Creative Guts on Facebook and Instagram (@CreativeGutsPodcast), and check out our website at www.CreativeGutsPodcast.com

If you love what we do, consider making a donation! Creative Guts is a small nonprofit, and your support truly makes a big difference. Learn more and make a tax-deductible donation at www.CreativeGutsPodcast.com.

In this episode of Creative Guts, co-hosts Becky Barsi and Joe Acone sit down with fine artist and painter Cindy Rizza.

Cindy is celebrated for her intimate still lifes that transform everyday textiles, heirlooms, and domestic objects into meditations on memory, comfort, and vulnerability. Her work often blurs the line between sanctuary and tension, inviting viewers to consider the deeper emotional and cultural weight carried by familiar materials. In this conversation, Cindy opens up about where her inspiration comes from, the process of translating personal memories into her visual language, and how she’s learned to be guided by her own taste and intuition. 

Dive into Cindy’s work at www.cindyrizza.com as well as on her instagram www.instagram.com/cindy_rizza.

Listen to this episode wherever you listen to podcasts or on our website www.CreativeGutsPodcast.com. Connect with us on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Discord. Creative Guts recently moved our newsletter to Substack, and you can find us at creativegutspod.substack.com. 

If you love listening, consider making a donation to Creative Guts! Our budget is tiny, so donations of any size make a big difference. Learn more about us and make a tax deductible donation at www.CreativeGutsPodcast.com. 

Thank you to our friends at Art Up Front Street Studios and Gallery in Exeter, NH and the Rochester Museum of Fine Arts in Rochester, NH for their support of the show!

In this bonus episode, we ask for a big favor: your input! As our Board of Directors heads into our strategic planning phase for the organization, your feed back will help us measure the impact of our work and how we can better serve creatives and aspiring creatives.

Through a raffle, one lucky winner will receive a Creative Guts tee-shirt, and another winner will receive a Creative Guts merch pack, with a mug, pin, and stickers. To enter the raffle, complete our survey by Friday, October 31st.

Find the survey here: https://forms.gle/SvexgSFSVSMXmfpj9

As always, hang out with Creative Guts on Facebook and Instagram where our handle is @CreativeGutsPodcast and visit our website www.CreativeGutsPodcast.com.

If you love listening, consider making a donation to Creative Guts! Our budget is tiny, so donations of any size make a big difference. Creative Guts is a small nonprofit, but our work is far bigger than this podcast. Learn more about us and make a tax deductible donation at www.CreativeGutsPodcast.com.  

In this episode of Creative Guts, co-hosts Laura Harper Lake and Becky Barsi chat with Shanta Lee Honeycutt, an award-winning visual artist, author, photographer; and Damon Honeycutt, a professional artist across the mediums of dance, martial arts, music composition. Both are also educators. Our conversations in this interview weave between the diverse mediums and adventures of these two creatives. We also discuss their meet-cute story and how collaboration goes from household to the work they do in the world.

Shanta is a winner of the New England Poetry Club’s Grant for Poetic Achievement, Abel Meeropol Social Justice Writing Award, and a 2024 National Arts Strategies Creative Community Fellow (New England), and her work has been widely featured in Harper’s Magazine, The Massachusetts Review, ITERANT Literary Magazine, Palette Poetry, Prism, Ms. Magazine, and DAME Magazine.  Damon has traveled to over 20+ countries around the world dancing in venues that range from the 2009 Royal Variety Performance in the presence of HM The Queen to the 79th Annual Academy Awards Ceremony. As a composer, Damon has composed music for many including Chatham Baroque, The Power String Quartet headed by Jennifer Choi, The Delgani String Quartet, Ensemble Entelechron, and Ken Thomson’s Saxophone Quartet.

Learn more about Shanta at www.Shantalee.com and about Damon at https://damonomad.wixsite.com/damonhoneycutt.

Listen to this episode wherever you listen to podcasts or on our website www.CreativeGutsPodcast.com. Connect with us on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Discord. Creative Guts recently moved our newsletter to Substack, and you can find us at creativegutspod.substack.com. 

If you love listening, consider making a donation to Creative Guts! Our budget is tiny, so donations of any size make a big difference. Learn more about us and make a tax-deductible donation at www.CreativeGutsPodcast.com. 

Thank you to our friends at Art Up Front Street Studios and Gallery in Exeter, NH and the Rochester Museum of Fine Arts in Rochester, NH for their support of the show!

The Creative Guts’ team is back with another installment of Creative Catalogues! In these mini episodes, someone from the Creative Guts’ team will share a glimpse at the inspiring, creative things and folks they think you ought to know about. This week’s episode is being hosted by Laura, one of the co-founders and hosts of Creative Guts and the artist behind Artful Harper Studios.  

Featured in this episode:

Annabell Dinda | https://music.apple.com/us/artist/annabelle-dinda/1156542943

https://open.spotify.com/artist/4iS7gVZUawLaXYADeRZL36?si=mcO1qbl5RnW3LjJ8WFyFLQ

https://www.tiktok.com/@applezandorangez

Enna Chocolate | ennachocolate.com  https://www.instagram.com/ennachocolate

Alexis Stefano | www.alexisstefano.com https://www.instagram.com/alexisstefano.studio/

https://www.facebook.com/alexisstefano.studio

Hang out with Creative Guts on Facebook and Instagram where our handle is @CreativeGutsPodcast and learn more online at www.CreativeGutsPodcast.com.

Join the Creative Guts Discord: https://discord.gg/QffA95SEdr

If you love listening, consider showing Creative Guts your support! You can leave a review, make a tax deductible donation, buy some merch, or interact with our content on social media. Learn more about us at www.CreativeGutsPodcast.com.

In this episode of Creative Guts, co-hosts Becky Barsi and Joe Acone sit down with cartoonist, historian, and award-winning author Joel Christian Gill.

Joel is celebrated for his powerful graphic novels that illuminate overlooked narratives from Black history, including Tales of The Talented Tenth, his graphic novelization of Stamped from the Beginning, and his autobiographical work Fights. His storytelling blends rigorous historical research with deeply personal narratives, fostering empathy and a more human understanding of the past and present. In addition to his published works, Joel chairs the Visual Narrative graduate program at Boston University, where he mentors the next generation of storytellers and artists.

Visit Joel's website at www.joelchristiangill.com.

Stamped from the Beginning, by Ibram X. Kendi (graphic novel adaptation by Joel Gill)

Fights: One Boy’s Triumph Over Violence

Tales of The Talented Tenth series

Art & Fear by David Bayles

Listen to this episode wherever you listen to podcasts or on our website www.CreativeGutsPodcast.com. Connect with us on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Discord. Creative Guts recently moved our newsletter to Substack, and you can find us at creativegutspod.substack.com. 

If you love listening, consider making a donation to Creative Guts! Our budget is tiny, so donations of any size make a big difference. Learn more about us and make a tax deductible donation at www.CreativeGutsPodcast.com. 

Thank you to our friends at Art Up Front Street Studios and Gallery in Exeter, NH and the Rochester Museum of Fine Arts in Rochester, NH for their support of the show!