Are You Ready to Thrive as an Artist?

I’m thrilled to announce the launch of my new program: The Illuminated Artist in Business: A Spiritual & Strategic Path to Thriving Professionally.

This 8-week guided online course (October 1 – November 26, 2025) is designed for artists who are ready to align their creativity with practical business tools and soulful practices. Together, we’ll:

• Design multiple income streams that align with your creative values

• Establish systems that protect your time and fuel your inspiration

• Cultivate resilience and well-being in your artistic practice

• Weave spiritual wisdom into practical business strategy

• Connect and collaborate with a vibrant community of artists

• Clarify your artistic voice and take confident steps on your path

✨ Early bird registration ends September 6th – save your spot now!

I created this program because I know how powerful it is to align your creative soul with a thriving business. This course is your invitation to step into clarity, confidence, and joy in your artistic life.

👉 Discover more here: Course Details
👉 Apply now and let’s grow together: Application Form

When Your Paint Runs Out: How Scarcity Sparks Ingenuity

A meeting area gets a creative boost by (I just want to) Make Art, 11” x 15” x 0.1” Acrylic on Canvas, © Deb Chaney Prints available on Saatchi Gallery.

Why constraint can be the spark of true innovation in your studio

What do you do when your favorite paint is out of stock? Or your budget doesn’t stretch to that new canvas? For many artists, moments like these can feel like creative roadblocks.

But what if they’re actually opportunities?

A 2020 study in Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin found that when people are faced with limited resources, they often produce more innovative and original outcomes.

Why?

Because those constraints push us to solve problems in new, creative ways.

In my own practice, some of my most exciting breakthroughs have come from improvising.

A roll of copper tape.

A scrap of sandpaper.

A discarded packaging box.

A single, accidental smear of color.

These moments often lead to compositions I never could have planned for in advance.

(I just want to) Make Art, 11” x 15” x 0.1” Acrylic on Canvas, © Deb Chaney Prints available on Saatchi Gallery.

When access is limited—whether by location, budget, or timing—it invites a deeper level of ingenuity. Driftwood becomes texture. A leaf creates a stencil. Even something found at a dollar store might become the highlight of your next piece of amazing artwork.

You can also reach out to your art community and barter for supplies, share tools, or start a materials swap. Sometimes, one artist’s surplus is another artist’s gold.

Instead of seeing what you lack as a limitation, ask yourself: What’s here now?

Let the studio become a space of alchemy, not just abundance.

My Simple Ritual to Beat Creative Dry Spells

A sitting area imbued with the energy of Relief, The Bridge to Feeling OK, 24” x 30” x 2.5” Acrylic on Canvas, © Deb Chaney Prints available on Saatchi Gallery.

How to return to your art when the well feels dry

There are seasons when creativity feels distant—after an illness, emotional upheaval, or simply long periods of silence. But the desire to make art doesn’t vanish.

It waits.

So how do we come back when we’re tired, disconnected, or unsure of where to begin?

One tool I return to again and again is something I call bridging—gently creating a link from where you are now, back into your creative flow. No pressure. Just a thread for connection.

Sometimes it’s as simple as setting things up the night before: laying out brushes, preparing a canvas, or leaving a short note with an idea for tomorrow’s layer. That way, when I step back into the studio, I’m not starting from zero—I’m re-entering a conversation.

Relief, The Bridge to Feeling OK, 24” x 30” x 2.5” Acrylic on Canvas, © Deb Chaney Prints available on Saatchi Gallery.

In my 68 Secrets of an Illuminated Artist card deck, one card says, “I set up the night before.” That tiny act of kindness to your future self can be a lifeline.

Other creative bridges?

Lighting a candle before you begin. Asking your inner guidance to walk with you. Whispering, “Just for today, I’ll show up.”

Even ten minutes counts. And often, ten minutes is all it takes to open the door to something beautiful.

What might your creative bridge look like today?

Stop Chasing Art Collectors. Let Them Come to You.

A dining area resonates with the power of Perseverance, 36” x 48” x 1.5” Acrylic on Canvas, © Deb Chaney Prints available on Saatchi Gallery.

 Why resonance—not chasing—is the key to finding your collectors

Have you ever wondered how to get your art in front of the people who truly see it? Those collectors, curators, designers, or gallerists who say, “Yes, that’s the one!”

The path might seem mysterious. But in my experience, the most aligned opportunities don’t come from chasing. They come from resonance.

When my daughter was younger, we had a little game. While watching movies, I’d pause the screen and point to the background:

“See that artwork? Let’s pretend it’s mine.”

Perseverance, 36” x 48” x 1.5” Acrylic on Canvas, © Deb Chaney Prints available on Saatchi Gallery.

Years later, I received an unexpected call from a Netflix art director. A production designer had discovered my work online and wanted to use it for a production set.

I didn’t pitch or pursue that opportunity. I hadn’t chased it down. I simply kept making the work, sharing it with genuine passion and belief, and holding a quiet vision.

That energy—clear, authentic, consistent—does the work of calling the right people in.

Collectors and collaborators are already out there.

What they’re looking for isn’t more art. They’re looking for a piece that feels like home. When your work carries your unique energy and message, it becomes easier for them to find you.

What if your job is not to push harder, but to speak more clearly through your art—and let the right eyes recognize what’s already theirs?

Why Creating Art is Essential Self-Care for Caregivers

A bedroom is brightened with Self Kindness, 36 x 48” x 2.5” Acrylic on Canvas, © Deb Chaney Prints available on Saatchi Gallery.

 Why making art is essential self-care—for caregivers and creators alike

For those caring for a loved one—whether a child, a parent, a partner, or even a pet—your energy is often focused outward. It’s easy to let your own creative practice fall away. But here’s the shift: your creativity isn’t an indulgence. It’s a lifeline.

Science backs this up.

Studies show that creative engagement reduces stress, lowers anxiety, boosts mood, and even improves immune function. Creating art doesn’t just feel good—it builds the inner reserves you need to keep showing up for others.

Self Kindness, 36 x 48” x 2.5” Acrylic on Canvas, © Deb Chaney Prints available on Saatchi Gallery.

I remember a chapter in my life when I was sleep-deprived and overwhelmed. My daughter was a newborn, and life was a blur of feedings and fatigue. One day, my husband gifted me a tiny set of acrylic paints and postcard-sized papers. I gave myself permission to sit and play—just for 20 minutes.

It changed everything.

That moment of creative joy recharged me so I could return to caring with more presence and grace.

What might that look like for you?

A sketch while your tea steeps. Ten minutes of color exploration after the house goes quiet. An evening collage. These “micro-practices” invite clarity and replenishment.

The truth is, your art may be the most essential act of care you offer—not just to yourself, but to those you love.

Overcoming Creative Isolation: How to Feel Seen as an Artist

Sun shines down upon Removing Negativity , 9” x 12” x 0.1” Acrylic on paper, © Deb Chaney Prints available on Saatchi Gallery.

 How making art connects us—even when no one’s watching

Have you ever felt like your art is being made in a vacuum? That no one is out there waiting to see what you create? It’s a quiet challenge many artists face—especially those working independently.

But here’s the truth: isolation is a temporary illusion. The act of creating is, in itself, a form of connection.

Recent research from the Foundation for Art & Healing shows that creative engagement—even when practiced alone—can reduce feelings of loneliness by increasing focus, emotional presence, and a deeper sense of meaning. Art reconnects us not only to others, but to ourselves.

Removing Negativity , 9” x 12” x 0.1” Acrylic on paper, © Deb Chaney Prints available on Saatchi Gallery.

I often return to Julia Cameron’s words: “Art is not about thinking something up. It is about getting something down.” That gesture of getting something down—a stroke of color, a texture layered, a feeling made visible—can be enough to stir a thread of connection.

Try this: photograph your work and send it to someone who truly sees you. Or reflect privately—write a note about how you felt while creating, even if no one ever reads it. Or simply pause after you make something and say: Thank you.

Sometimes, the connection we’re searching for is already forming quietly within us—and from there, it finds its way outward.