Today we’d like to introduce you to Steve Mayse Shelley Mayse.
Hi steve mayse, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
We designed and built our home in ’90 on 2 acres of woods in Lenexa. Steve built the studio (2005-8) (25′ x33′) to serve both artwork production as an artist/illustrator and Shelley’s work with clients and groups. We hold creative workshops, events, and Shelley holds her business activities in that space. We are both still working – Steve’s work: senior professor at the Kansas City Art Institute (former endowed chair of the illustration dept.), Shelley’s work: a licensed specialist clinical social worker/consultant holding Reflective supervision sessions with a number of groups both local and nationally. Our bios and workshops are available on our website (www.fresheyestudio.com). Shelley also is an infant mental health mentor, expressive arts facilitator and life coach. She is trained in a variety of expressive arts modalities including: SoulCollage, Touch Drawing, SandTray and Broken Bowl (Kintsugi).
The creative workshops we hold incorporate Awe walks in the woods, mindfulness, poetry, gourmet meals, ( shelley loves to cook); and sharing creative space with others to awaken a childlike beginner’s mind and explore your creative voice. We have worked with individuals having all levels of art experience. We have designed workshops to fit the needs of the organization or group, ex: team building retreats, families, celebrations, and friend groups.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
We view our challenges as an opportunity for growth and resilience. It’s a leap of faith (or determination) to build 2 businesses and a home/studio, raise 4 kids and stay true to your hopes/dreams. When we built on the studio we planned it to be a space that we both could enjoy as well as share for creativity events. We knew it was a unique space that would offer a memorable experience for others. We have not marketed our space, it’s been “word of mouth” events. We would like a wider presence in the community.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
Steve is a Sr. professor. at KCAI, built a freelance business from ’77-2010 and developed the illustration dept. new program (2010). He brings years of professional experience to his work with students, creating images for national print, as well as assemblage art for galleries national and international. Steve also self published a large format “art/book” that chronicles, through story and image, his journey as a caregiver for his mother in her last weeks of life. The book is titled ” Fixin to Go”. Shelley practices clinical social work and provides Reflective supervision/consultation to groups of home visitors and individual clients. Shelley built her private practice after working in community mental health, hospice, and early childhood ed. She has always included the arts in her work, where appropriate, and finds the arts to be a catalyst for healing and healthy living. She has traveled to various other states to facilitate creativity events thru invitations from professional associations, colleagues and friends. We are known for helping people live their lives in a way that brings them joy and fulfillment. We feel most proud of spending our time in this helpful way, growing our businesses and creating a home environment that fuels our personal and professional vision.
Our roles are both as leaders in each of our different professions and the combination of teaching, healing and the arts helps to set us apart from others.We hope for people to leave here with a fresh perspective on themselves and their relationship to creativity.
Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
Most people who come to our home are immediately impressed with the peaceful quality, the way we have decorated our home with unusual artifacts, art by us and others, and the open nature of the home setting in the woods. Many windows look onto woods and multiple decks to bring the outside in. Many say it feels like being at a retreat center! We always say this is the reason we built the home; to share our love of the arts, and nature, and raise our family in creative inspiration.
During covid Steve built our “Nature Nook”, out in our woods, a 12×12 small space with sliding glass doors on 3 sides and a large deck. Shelley can have small groups or individual clients there, and we love to to entertain/happy hr and have a bonfire.
Pricing:
- depends on the group, # of people, or times; we work with people and their budget
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.fresheyestudio.com
- Facebook: don’t do facebook.
- LinkedIn: don’t do linkedin.
- Twitter: don’t do twitter.
