Carrie Schmitt

Carrie’s Soul Art Day Interview

Why have you chosen the artist path?

I do not think I chose this path—I feel that it chose me. In 2009, I developed a rare life-threatening allergy to heat. I could barely move without having an anaphylactic reaction to my own body heat. I was bedridden for months and severely depressed, even having suicidal imaginings. One day I heard a voice say, “Now that your life is over, you might as well do what you want and paint.” Luckily, I listened and began painting in bed. Creativity comforted me and held me in a way that no human could. It carried me across the painful threshold from the death of my old life to the beginning of my life as an artist. It allowed my greatest burden to become my greatest blessing, and for this I am eternally indebted and grateful. Because of this, I have devoted my life to honouring and celebrating creativity and sharing its gifts with others.

How would you describe your creative process?

My creative process is a love affair between me and the Creative Spirit, or force, that I feel each time I paint. I surrender to this force and allow it to work thru me. I try to actively NOT finish the piece by going in the opposite direction of trying to make a finished painting. I like to say I run in the opposite direction, into the wild unknown where I find all the magic and gifts the process has to offer me. I never know what will happen on the canvas. I just begin making marks and allow the painting to emerge thru layers. This can take quite some time, and I love working slow and not rushing the process. My favorite paintings take the longest to create. I believe the energy of rushing the process can be felt in pieces, and the energy of savouring and delighting and a long love affair can also be sensed in pieces. I prefer the latter.

Why do you make art?

I make art to connect to Source, the Creative Force that lives within all of us and is the pulse of the universe. I make art to honour the unconditional love art offers us. I make art to remember that we are all in relationship with this beautiful unseen force that offers us so many gifts. My art is an offering and a devotional practice to my Beloved Creativity.