Creative Contemplation – Détails, épisodes et analyse

Send us Fan Mail

November 20, 2025
Creative Contemplation
S4E7 Aaron M. Thompson; Painter of Observation And Imagining

Suzanne Lago Arthur, host and creator of The Creative Contemplation Podcast reconnects with Pennsylvania based painter, Aaron M. Thompson to discuss his work, his journey as an artist and the relationships he has forged with his mentors, two exceptional American realist painters--Phillip Geiger and Scott Noel.

Website: www.aaronmichaelthompson.com

Instagram: @paintlanguage

Phillip Geiger Retrospective, Daura Museum of Art, University of Lynchburg

Scott Noel talk at the Phillip Geiger Retrospective

Bio

Aaron M. Thompson is a professional painter whose Paintings and Drawings have been exhibited in P.A.F.A.’s Samuel M. V. Hamilton Museum, the Charles DeMuth Museum, and Provincetown Art Association Museum. A native of Charleston, South Carolina, Thompson earned his BFA from Savannah College of Art and Design and was awarded The Merit Scholarship from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, where he later earned a Masters Degree in Painting. As a Gamblin Artist Colors Mid-Atlantic Educational Representative, Aaron has given lectures on “navigating color space” and oil painting “material practices” at Museums and Institutions of Higher Education for a decade. Currently, he is a Full-Time Assistant Professor at the Pennsylvania College of Art and Design where he teaches drawing and painting in the Fine Art Department.

Host Bio:

Suzanne Lago Arthur is a contemporary realist painter from Northern Virginia. Born in Puerto Rico to Cuban-American parents, her artistic explorations were nurtured from an early age by her family.

Through her paintings Suzanne explores the themes of beauty, transience and memory.  She has exhibited both nationally and internationally in such venues as the Corcoran Gallery of Art and Art Museum of the Americas in Washington DC, Booth Museum of Western Art in Cartersville, GA, the United States Interests Section, Havana, Cuba and in art galleries across the United States. She holds a BFA from the Corcoran School of Art and an MA in Museum Studies from George Washington University.

Website: www.lagoarthurstudio.com
Instagram: Suzanne Lago Arthur (@lagoarthurstudio)
Logo design by Elisa Nader,  Mag7
Artwork, "Abby in Contemplation"

Send us Fan Mail

October 8, 2025
Creative Contemplation
S4E6 Morgan Irons; Painter of Archetypal Symbolism Within The Western Landscape

Suzanne Lago Arthur, host and creator of The Creative Contemplation Podcast has a moving and at times astonishing conversation with Montana based painter, Morgan Irons about her psychologically charged work set within the Western landscape that she lives in. Don't miss this inspiring episode that will have you listening with bated breath.

Website: www.morganirons.com

Instagram: @morganirons

Old Main Gallery, Bozeman Motana

Bio

Primarily a self taught painter, Morgan Irons began studying painting in 2015 following her move to a rural piece of land in Montana. It was then she began studying the work of master painters and has since sought out workshops with some of the top representational painters today. A figurative painter by nature, Irons believes in painting solely what she knows best, life on the land she lives. Her paintings are narrative and timeless in theme and palette.

 Morgan Irons has been a featured artist in Fine Art Connoisseur's "Artists to Watch", Southwest Art Magazine’s “21 Under 31: Young Artists to Watch in 2017”, and Big Sky Journal's "Ones to Watch". She is a two-time recipient of the 2018 Elizabeth Greenshields Foundation Grant for emerging figurative painters. Irons is represented by Old Main Gallery in Bozeman, Montana where she currently lives and paints in a cabin on a mountaintop.

Host Bio:

Suzanne Lago Arthur is a contemporary realist painter from Northern Virginia. Born in Puerto Rico to Cuban-American parents, her artistic explorations were nurtured from an early age by her family.

Through her paintings Suzanne explores the themes of beauty, transience and memory.  She has exhibited both nationally and internationally in such venues as the Corcoran Gallery of Art and Art Museum of the Americas in Washington DC, Booth Museum of Western Art in Cartersville, GA, the United States Interests Section, Havana, Cuba and in art galleries across the United States. She holds a BFA from the Corcoran School of Art and an MA in Museum Studies from George Washington University.

Website: www.lagoarthurstudio.com
Instagram: Suzanne Lago Arthur (@lagoarthurstudio)
Logo design by Elisa Nader,  Mag7
Artwork, "Abby in Contemplation"

Send us Fan Mail

August 28, 2024
Creative Contemplation
S3E7 Erin Raedeke; Reimagined Memories Through Painting

In S3E7 of the Creative Contemplation Podcast, host & creator Suzanne Lago Arthur has a thoughtful conversation with Washington DC area painter, Erin Raedeke about her beginnings, her international career and the process and creation of her largely memory-based paintings.

Website: erinraedeke.com
Instagram: @erinraedeke
Upcoming Classes
Tregony Gallery, Cornwall, England


Bio:

Erin Raedeke received her MFA from American University in 2009 and her BFA in Painting from Indiana University Bloomington in 2000. She also studied at the Maryland Institute College of Art.  Raedeke has exhibited her work extensively in both group and solo shows, nationally as well as internationally.  One of her self-portraits was included in the BP Portrait Award at the National Portrait Gallery in London in 2006. Along with having solo exhibits in NYC, Baltimore, Philadelphia, among others, in 2019 Raedeke had a solo show at the Crisp- Ellert Art Museum in St. Augustine, FL. 

Since 2013, Raedeke has been teaching, leading workshops and giving lectures about her work across the country and abroad.  She has been a visiting critic at Mount Gretna School of Art, and a guest artist at numerous universities and colleges.  Raedeke has taught at multiple institutions, including the Washington Studio School, The College of William & Mary, the Dulwich Art Group, and Black Pond Studio.  

Host Bio:

Suzanne Lago Arthur is a contemporary realist painter from Northern Virginia. Born in Puerto Rico to Cuban-American parents, her artistic explorations were nurtured from an early age by her family.

Through her paintings Suzanne explores the themes of beauty, transience and memory.  She has exhibited both nationally and internationally in such venues as the Corcoran Gallery of Art and Art Museum of the Americas in Washington DC, Booth Museum of Western Art in Cartersville, GA, the United States Interests Section, Havana, Cuba and in art galleries across the United States. She holds a BFA from the Corcoran School of Art and an MA in Museum Studies from George Washington University.

Website: www.lagoarthurstudio.com
Instagram: Suzanne Lago Arthur (@lagoarthurstudio)
Logo design by Elisa Nader,  Mag7
Artwork, "Abby in Contemplation" by artist Suzanne Lago Arthur
Music by Up North Music 

Send us Fan Mail

July 30, 2024
Creative Contemplation
S3E6 Ferrier, Bishop & Van Dyke
 
Creative Contemplation podcast host & creator Suzanne Lago Arthur has a light-hearted yet insightful conversation with three artists; Jodi Kolker Ferrier, Lindy Bishop and Rachael Van Dyke about their work, their interactions as both colleagues and friends and the artist residencies that they have participated in together. Are you a Creative that wants to broaden your horizons and travel? Then this episode is for you!

Ferrier Website: jodiferrier.com
Bishop Website: lindybishop.com
Van Dyke Website: rachelvandyke.com
Ferrier IG: @jodiferrier
Bishop IG: @lindybishopart
Van Dyke IG: @vandyker

Jodi Kolker Ferrier
A painting for me starts with a call from an external stimuli, something that sparks an emotional response within me. It can be something as simple as light passing through an unexpected space, or unique shapes created by overlapping forms, or perhaps the weight of a dense object resting upon a delicate surface. Each painting starts with a sense of urgency, working quickly, boldly, attacking the surface with energetic and lively brush strokes.

Lindy Bishop
My work is about celebrating the land, what it grows and how it feeds us. I believe my role as an artist in rural America is to cross-pollinate with other cultures, communities, art and artists, youth and technology. With that, I’d like to bring hope and healing. Having worked in Uganda, South Africa and Costa Rica, I see a movement percolating, similar to American Regionalism which grew out of the Great Depression— but more expressive and more global. That's what I want to be a part of. 
 
Rachael Van Dyke
Rachael Van Dyke is a full-time artist creating abstract landscape and figurative work inspired by living off the grid in the Blue Ridge mountains and traveling abroad. Van Dyke is an avid artist-in-residence and has participated in national and international residencies. These residencies create new boundaries for her work and encourage an alteration of technique and expression.

Artist Residency Websites Mentioned: ResArtis.org, Cafe and VCCA

Host Bio:
Suzanne Lago Arthur is a contemporary realist painter from Northern Virginia. Born in Puerto Rico to Cuban-American parents, her artistic explorations were nurtured from an early age by her family.

Through her paintings Suzanne explores the themes of beauty, transience and memory.  She has exhibited both nationally and internationally in such venues as the Corcoran Gallery of Art and Art Museum of the Americas in Washington DC, Booth Museum of Western Art in Cartersville, GA, the United States Interests Section, Havana, Cuba and in art galleries across the United States. She holds a BFA from the Corcoran School of Art and an MA in Museum Studies from George Washington University.

Website: www.lagoarthurstudio.com
Instagram: Suzanne Lago Arthur (@lagoarthurstudio)
Logo design by Elisa Nader,  Mag7
Artwork, "Abby in Contempl

Send us Fan Mail

June 26, 2024
Creative Contemplation
S3E5 Kai Samuels-Davis Continued
 
Creative Contemplation podcast host & creator Suzanne Lago Arthur continues her S3E4 conversation with American painter Kai Samuels-Davis about his journey to becoming an artist, his re-discovery of self and how in the process he discovered his own artistic voice. Kai describes in detail the inspiration behind his current body of work and his solo show "Emergence" at Ryan Graff Contemporary which runs until June 29th, 2024. Check out the S3E4 episode with Kai before listening to this one. Both episodes delve deeply into the topics of spirituality and creativity.

Website: kaisamuelsdavis.com
Instagram (Painting): @kaisamuelsdavis
Ryan Graff Contemporary: "Emergence" Solo Show of Kai Samuel Davis
Kai Samuels-Davis "Emergence" Catalogue

Bio:

Kai Samuels-Davis is a New York born artist living and working in Inverness, CA. He attended classes at the Woodstock School of Art at the age of 16, followed by a stint at the Art Students League of New York the following year. In 2002 he received his Bachelors in Fine Arts degree at State University of New York Purchase before moving to California where he completed the graduate program in film at Art Center College of Design in 2006.

Though not directly pursuing film, cinematic themes often arise in his paintings, giving them the sense of being fragments of a larger framework of thoughts. His work is composed mainly of portraits and figures focusing on introspective moments we keep to ourselves. By primarily using found imagery as reference material, a separation is created between artist and subject, allowing the imagery to distance itself from representing specific individuals. The portraits instead change and evolve into a new persona which is abstracted and intentionally ambiguous. This gives the viewer the opportunity to create their own narrative, meaning or associations and makes each piece uniquely personal.

Host Bio:

Suzanne Lago Arthur is a contemporary realist painter from Northern Virginia. Born in Puerto Rico to Cuban-American parents, her artistic explorations were nurtured from an early age by her family.

Through her paintings Suzanne explores the themes of beauty, transience and memory.  She has exhibited both nationally and internationally in such venues as the Corcoran Gallery of Art and Art Museum of the Americas in Washington DC, Booth Museum of Western Art in Cartersville, GA, the United States Interests Section, Havana, Cuba and in art galleries across the United States. She holds a BFA from the Corcoran School of Art and an MA in Museum Studies from George Washington University.

Website: www.lagoarthurstudio.com
Instagram: Suzanne Lago Arthur (@lagoarthurstudio)
Logo design by Elisa Nader,  Mag7
Artwork, "Abby in Contemplation" by artist Suzanne
Creative Contemplation theme music by Up North Music 
"The girl from near Ipanema elevator music" by Timbre

Send us Fan Mail

May 29, 2024
Creative Contemplation
S3E4 Kai Samuels-Davis
 
Creative Contemplation podcast host & creator Suzanne Lago Arthur has an enlightening conversation with American painter Kai Samuels-Davis about his journey to becoming an artist, his re-discovery of self and how in the process he discovered his own artistic voice. Kai describes in detail the inspiration behind his current body of work and his solo show "Emergence" at Ryan Graff Contemporary. This mind-expanding episode delves deeply into the topics of spirituality and creativity.

Website: kaisamuelsdavis.com
Instagram (Painting): @kaisamuelsdavis
Ryan Graff Contemporary: "Emergence" Solo Show of Kai Samuel Davis

Bio:

Kai Samuels-Davis is a New York born artist living and working in Inverness, CA. He attended classes at the Woodstock School of Art at the age of 16, followed by a stint at the Art Students League of New York the following year. In 2002 he received his Bachelors in Fine Arts degree at State University of New York Purchase before moving to California where he completed the graduate program in film at Art Center College of Design in 2006.

Though not directly pursuing film, cinematic themes often arise in his paintings, giving them the sense of being fragments of a larger framework of thoughts. His work is composed mainly of portraits and figures focusing on introspective moments we keep to ourselves. By primarily using found imagery as reference material, a separation is created between artist and subject, allowing the imagery to distance itself from representing specific individuals. The portraits instead change and evolve into a new persona which is abstracted and intentionally ambiguous. This gives the viewer the opportunity to create their own narrative, meaning or associations and makes each piece uniquely personal.

Painting primarily with oils on wood using a combination of brushes and metal and rubber scrapers, paint is applied layer upon layer highlighting its history and texture. Structures and spaces are fragmented or blurred to accentuate the balance between distraction and clarity in daily thought. The images are cerebral and visceral, creating a mood of melancholy and solitude with an appreciation for their necessity and beauty.

Host Bio:

Suzanne Lago Arthur is a contemporary realist painter from Northern Virginia. Born in Puerto Rico to Cuban-American parents, her artistic explorations were nurtured from an early age by her family.

Through her paintings Suzanne explores the themes of beauty, transience and memory.  She has exhibited both nationally and internationally in such venues as the Corcoran Gallery of Art and Art Museum of the Americas in Washington DC, Booth Museum of Western Art in Cartersville, GA, the United States Interests Section, Havana, Cuba and in art galleries across the United States. She holds a BFA from the Corcoran School of Art and an MA in Museum Studies from George Washington University.

Website: www.lagoarthurstudio.com
Instagram: Suzanne Lago Arthur (@lagoarthurstudio)
Logo design by Elisa Nader,  Mag7
Artwork, "Abby in Contemplation" by artist Suzanne Lago Arthur
Music b

Send us Fan Mail

May 13, 2024
Creative Contemplation
S3E3 Laura Smith
 
Creative Contemplation podcast host & creator Suzanne Lago Arthur has a very special conversation with British painter Laura Smith about her work, her formative years and the extraordinary training she acquired with some of Britain's most beloved observational painters.  This is truly an episode you don't want to miss!

Website: laura-smith.com
Instagram (Painting): laurajrsmith
NEAC: Laura Smith
Crean and Company (Gallery): Laura Smith

Artists Mentioned:

William Coldstream
Euan Uglow
Frank Auerbach
Andy Pankhurst
Leon Kossoff
Lucy Jones
Francis Hoyland

Bio:

Laura Smith trained at The Slade School of Fine Art where she won the Clare Winsten Memorial Award, graduating from her MFA in 2012. A still-life painter working towards the abstract tradition, she is interested in dissolving our familiarity with everyday objects. Her current work explores the idea that repeated motifs enable a deeper and freer investigation of the objects themselves. The paintings often depict emotive gestures and actions, where objects take the place of the loved, the abandoned and the closely held.  

Host Bio:

Suzanne Lago Arthur is a contemporary realist painter from Northern Virginia. Born in Puerto Rico to Cuban-American parents, her artistic explorations were nurtured from an early age by her family.

Through her paintings Suzanne explores the themes of beauty, transience and memory.  She has exhibited both nationally and internationally in such venues as the Corcoran Gallery of Art and Art Museum of the Americas in Washington DC, Booth Museum of Western Art in Cartersville, GA, the United States Interests Section, Havana, Cuba and in art galleries across the United States. She holds a BFA from the Corcoran School of Art and an MA in Museum Studies from George Washington University.

Website: www.lagoarthurstudio.com
Instagram: Suzanne Lago Arthur (@lagoarthurstudio)
Logo design by Elisa Nader,  Mag7
Artwork, "Abby in Contemplation" by artist Suzanne Lago Arthur
Music by Up North Music 

Send us Fan Mail

April 3, 2024
Creative Contemplation
S3E2 Ilaria Rosselli Del Turco
 
Creative Contemplation podcast host & creator Suzanne Lago Arthur has a delightful conversation with the Italian painter Ilaria Rosselli Del Turco about her painting and printmaking practices and the self-discovery she has gained from her work.

Website: ilardt.com
Instagram (Painting): @ilariardt
Instagram (Printmaking): @ilaria.rdt_ink


Bio:

Ilaria Rosselli Del Turco initially trained as an illustrator in Florence and Rome but eventually found that her true passion was for painting portraits and still lifes in oils. She studied painting at Heatherley’s in London and subsequently exhibited at the BP Portrait Award in 2010. Rosselli Del Turco’s paintings are tranquil and quietly poetic, making use of beautiful harmonious colour in compositions that celebrate simple everyday observations. 

Host Bio:

Suzanne Lago Arthur is a contemporary realist painter from Northern Virginia. Born in Puerto Rico to Cuban-American parents, her artistic explorations were nurtured from an early age by her family.

Through her paintings Suzanne explores the themes of beauty, transience and memory.  She has exhibited both nationally and internationally in such venues as the Corcoran Gallery of Art and Art Museum of the Americas in Washington DC, Booth Museum of Western Art in Cartersville, GA, the United States Interests Section, Havana, Cuba and in art galleries across the United States. She holds a BFA from the Corcoran School of Art and an MA in Museum Studies from George Washington University.

Website: www.lagoarthurstudio.com
Instagram: Suzanne Lago Arthur (@lagoarthurstudio)
Logo design by Elisa Nader,  Mag7
Artwork, "Abby in Contemplation" by artist Suzanne Lago Arthur
Music by Up North Music 

Upcoming Spring 2024 classes and workshops with Suzanne Lago Arthur.

Send us Fan Mail

March 2, 2024
Creative Contemplation
S3E1 Teresa Oaxaca Returns
 
Creative Contemplation podcast host & creator Suzanne Lago Arthur has an engaging conversation with her friend, the classical surrealist painter, Teresa Oaxaca. In this episode, Teresa and Suzanne discuss how to best align your life so that you are engaging in your creative practice as much as possible and making a living from it.

Website: teresaoaxaca.com
Instagram: @teresaoaxaca
X (formerly Twitter): @teresaoaxaca

"Mythos and Nature", Teresa Oaxaca Solo Show @ Touchstone Gallery
Washington, DC
Feb 28th - March 30, 2024

Teresa Oaxaca Workshops

Bio:

Teresa Oaxaca is an American born artist based currently in Washington D.C. She is a full time painter whose works can be seen in collections and galleries throughout the US and internationally. Her talent has been recognized and rewarded by museums and institutions such as the American Museum of the Cowboy, The former Corcoran Gallery of Art, The Art Renewal Center, The Elisabeth Greenshields Foundation, the Posey Foundation, and The Portrait Society of America and the Museu Europeu D’Art Modern in Barcelona.

Host Bio:

Suzanne Lago Arthur is a contemporary realist painter from Northern Virginia. Born in Puerto Rico to Cuban-American parents, her artistic explorations were nurtured from an early age by her family.

Through her paintings Suzanne explores the themes of beauty, transience and memory.  She has exhibited both nationally and internationally in such venues as the Corcoran Gallery of Art and Art Museum of the Americas in Washington DC, Booth Museum of Western Art in Cartersville, GA, the United States Interests Section, Havana, Cuba and in art galleries across the United States. She holds a BFA from the Corcoran School of Art and an MA in Museum Studies from George Washington University.

Website: www.lagoarthurstudio.com
Instagram: Suzanne Lago Arthur (@lagoarthurstudio)
Logo design by Elisa Nader,  Mag7
Artwork, "Abby in Contemplation" by artist Suzanne Lago Arthur
Music by Up North Music 

Send us Fan Mail

December 22, 2023
Creative Contemplation
S2E10 Stephen Copeland
 
Creative Contemplation podcast host & creator Suzanne Lago Arthur has a fascinating conversation with writer Stephen Copeland about his latest memoir, In the House of the Rising Sounds published by Resource Publications, which explores the themes of "thin spaces" and the connection between spirituality and creativity which he discovered at the famed blues venue in Charlotte, NC - the Double Door Inn.  Be sure to listen to this mind-expanding episode perfectly timed for Christmas.

Website: copelandwrites.com
Facebook: Stephen Copeland
Instagram: @steve_copeland
X (formerly Twitter): @steve_copeland

Memoirs:
House of the Rising Sounds (Paperback)
House of the Rising Sounds (Audiobook)
Where the Colors Blend (Paperback)



Bio:

Stephen Copeland is a writer and storyteller who has collaborated on over a dozen books. He is a regular columnist and feature writer for the St. Anthony Messenger and Franciscan Media. His first memoir Where the Colors Blend was published in 2018 and his second In the House of Rising Sounds will be published May 2023. He also collaborated on Franciscan Lectio with Fr. Dan Riley, OFM. He obtained his bachelor's degree in journalism and Bible from Grace College in Winona Lake, Indiana, and is pursuing a Master of Theological Studies degree from the University of San Diego’s Franciscan School of Theology. Stephen can be found on Twitter and Instagram at the handle @steve_copeland.

Host Bio:

Suzanne Lago Arthur is a contemporary realist painter from Northern Virginia. Born in Puerto Rico to Cuban-American parents, her artistic explorations were nurtured from an early age by her family.

Through her paintings Suzanne explores the themes of beauty, transience and memory.  She has exhibited both nationally and internationally in such venues as the Corcoran Gallery of Art and Art Museum of the Americas in Washington DC, the United States Interests Section, Havana, Cuba and in art galleries across the United States. She holds a BFA from the Corcoran School of Art and an MA in Museum Studies from George Washington University.

Website: www.lagoarthurstudio.com
Instagram: Suzanne Lago Arthur (@lagoarthurstudio)
Logo design by Elisa Nader,  Mag7
Artwork, "Abby in Contemplation" by artist Suzanne Lago Arthur
Music by Up North Music