O U R C O M M U N I T Y
Creative Community: Finding Beauty in Our Differences
Thomas Berry writes, “It’s all a matter of a story. We are in trouble now because we do not have a good story. We are in between stories. The old story, the account of how the world came to be and how we fit in it, is no longer effective. Yet we have not learned a new story. We need a story that will educate us, a story that will heal, guide, and discipline us.” Perhaps we can shape together our new creation story of mystery and wonder, justice, relationship and sensing the deepest note in the universe, love. This feels rich with possibilities for engaging communities and offers us the capacity to transform our world.
Creating something together that we could not create alone is a natural part of our personal artistic process, and we seek to bring this into our community art. We believe it is intrinsically empowering to stir a person’s imagination with story and to create art in its many forms, together. That has been the inspiration for gathering artists, writers, theologians, and story tellers into our creative community.
Gary Marx (1952-2022)
Author + Editor
Gary left us far too soon, but his memory, friendship and creative collaboration will carry on. Gary planted oaks for his children, stepchildren, and grandchildren, for a future he wouldn’t see. He studied the solstice, the moon, the stars. He hoped the children would look up at the night sky and “marvel at a mystery.” “We’ll never know it all,” he wrote. This is nota failing… to the contrary, there is no higher achievement of humankind that to sit and stare into the face of the universe and feel a sense of wonder. And awe.” Gary’s latest book, Illinois Trails and Traces: Portraits and Stories along the State’s Historic Routes published by Southern Illinois University Press has been included in the Nov. 24th edition of the New York Review of Books and has won literary awards. Gary’s creative light continues to shine.
See Gary’s books on our shop page.
Rev. Dr. Gary Mason
Director Rethinking Conflict
Belfast, Northern Ireland
Rev. Dr. Gary Mason is a Methodist minister and directs a conflict transformation organization based in Belfast, Northern Ireland called "Rethinking Conflict." Prior to this he spent 27 years as a Methodist clergy person in parish ministry in Belfast and has played an integral role in the Northern Irish peace process. He played a key role in establishing the $30 million Skainos project which is a world class urban centre developed in a post conflict society as a model of co-existence and shared space, it is acknowledged as the largest faith-based redevelopment project in Western Europe. Mason is a close advisor to Protestant ex-combatants on the civilianization efforts of paramilitaries. He was instrumental in facilitating negotiations with paramilitaries and government officials, and in 2007 his contribution was formally recognized by the Queen. Mason has lectured in political and academic forums throughout Europe, South Africa, the Middle East and the U.S.A. on lessons from the Irish peace process. He holds a PhD in Psychology from the University of Ulster, completed his theological studies at Queens University, and a Bachelor’s in Business Studies from the University of Ulster. Gary also holds an honorary doctorate from Florida Southern College for his role in peace building in Ireland.
Gary is also part of a small group of people whose goal is to facilitate the creation of a strategic plan for the Biden Administration in implementing The Nita M. Lowey Middle East Partnership for Peace Act (MEPPA) of 2020 which was passed by the US Congress. In this role he will advise and guide the Biden Administration in strengthening civil society and developing grass roots peace building in the Israeli/Palestinian arena.
Learn more about our community
Steve Wood
Strategist + Planner
Overland Park, Kansas US
Steve is one of those characters who veers between the analytic/admin type and the creative/vision type - to borrow from Iain McGilchrist. Steve went to university to study engineering and graduated in modern letters. Then he stumbled into advertising where one adapts to the chaos of marketing by developing ADHD-like behaviors, bouncing from one deadline-driven project to another, working in roles as writer, creative director, strategist and planner, interpreter, pitchman and mediator. He thrives in collaborative settings, aiming to probe and distill useful insights from the confusion and randomness that shape the challenges and objectives of any worthwhile endeavor. Over the last couple years, Swood has worked with Chuck+Peg to think through how Genesis+Art can become a welcoming and sustainable entity at the intersections of humankind and the world that hosts us.
Pádraig Ó Tuama
Poet + Theologian
Dublin, Ireland
Poet and theologian, Pádraig Ó Tuama’s work centres around themes of language, power, conflict and religion. Working fluently on the page and in public, Pádraig is a compelling poet and skilled speaker, teacher and group worker. Pádraig presents Poetry Unbound with On Being Studios and in late 2019 was named Theologian in Residence for On Being, innovating in bringing art and theology into public and civic life. When BBC journalist William Crawley introduced Pádraig on the stage to deliver a TEDx talk on Story, Crawley said, "He's probably the best public speaker I know."
John Hermanson
Songwriter + Composer
Minneapolis, Minnesota US
John Hermanson is an award-winning songwriter and composer who has created and sold music in many genres, most notably orchestral, world, pop, and rock. John is a member of the acclaimed duo Storyhill, and has been a regular guest performer on NPR's A Prairie Home Companion.
Subashini Nadarajah
Executive Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Kansas City, Missouri
Suba leads the development and implementation of internal strategies at VMLY&R that nurture a vibrant, inclusive and equitable global culture. In cultivating independent employee networks and programs she collaborates with organizations such as NAAAP, MAGLCC and GLAAD to widen industry support systems. Suba has a unique mix of culture, is multilingual, and has a strong, keen eye for art and design, and extensive global experiences.
Thomas Rex Beverly
Field Recordist + Composer
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania US
As a field recordist and composer, Thomas explores our evolving planet through sound. In today’s fast-paced world, there are too many people drowning in an unhealthy lack of silence. Soundscapes free from noise pollution are vanishing at an alarming rate, so we must take the opportunity to reconnect with pristine nature whenever possible. Through his stories, field recordings, music, and sound art he hopes to inspire listeners to help preserve these precious natural soundscapes for future generations.
His quest to explore and record has led him to record the wild sounds of bears, birds of prey, hummingbirds, parrots, songbirds, bats, coyotes, fox, sika deer, elk, moose, insects and many more. Beyond animals, Beverly loves weather.
Since his boyhood days of storm chasing, he has always been awed by storms. This has led to recording adventures in all sorts of weather. Imagine the sounds of summer storms dropping quarter-sized hailstones, dangerously close lightning strikes tearing the sky, biting sandstorms on exposed skin, hurricane force winds you can lean into, and massive snow storms triggering roaring avalanches.
Beyond ambiences, Beverly offers raw materials for sound design. These sound libraries focus on unheard sounds of natural materials. Imagine the sounds of bowed cactus screeching with otherworldly energy, ringing rocks chiming like church bells, giant pinecones stuttering like alien languages, and aeolian harps singing the natural music of the wind.
Jan Richardson
Author + Artist
Orlando, Florida US
Jan Richardson is an artist, writer, and United Methodist minister who serves as director of The Wellspring Studio, LLC. Her work has attracted an international audience drawn to the spaces of welcome, imagination, and solace that she creates in both word and image. Jan’s books include The Cure for Sorrow, Night Visions, In the Sanctuary of Women, and her newest book, Sparrow: A Book of Life and Death and Life. She is especially known as a crafter of blessings that enter deeply into our human experience.
Pam Kelley
Playwright + Beekeeper
Carbondale, Illinois US
Pam Kelley has been a playwright, editor, and beekeeper. She loves LOVE... as editorial director of Valentine’s Day products at Hallmark Cards in Kansas City, she collaborated with writers and artists to help people share their hearts. She now works for the Graduate School at Southern Illinois University – Carbondale. She believes in maybe, so that every day is filled with surprises.
Emilie Bouvier
Photographer
she / her / hers
Saint Paul, Minnesota US
Emilie Bouvier is an artist and community organizer in Minnesota’s Twin Cities. Emilie works in historic/alternative process photography and clay, finding her practice fueled by the process-oriented nature of these mediums. She is drawn to the places where land history, story, and spiritual/theological traditions meet – and how those intersections can open up through image-making.
Emilie’s artmaking is at once a deeply internal practice and one that consistently is strengthened and shared in community. Her spiritual grounding and work within the Lutheran faith community has been a consistent thread through both. Emilie received her MA from Luther Seminary in 2014, where she concurrently served as resident artist. She has since held residencies at Pilgrim Lutheran Church in St. Paul, MN (2015) and Holden Village in Washington State (2016). In 2019 she returned to Holden for a yearlong stint as Village Artist. Emilie currently serves as Director of Organizing for the Minneapolis Area Synod, ELCA.
Sharon Query
Studio Manager
Moorhead, Minnesota US
Sharon Query serves as Studio Manager for Genesis+Art, providing organizational structure for exhibitions and workshops. Her 40+ year career in Cooperative Extension focused on positive youth development. She served as Education Coordinator for Holden Village for four years. She lives in Moorhead, MN and loves spending time with her grandchildren.