Introducing "Artist Highlight", a monthly feature about an artist I've had the pleasure of mentoring in the Down to Earth Studio.This month's feature:

Meet Lori Yandell—artist, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother (Photo above with great grandson Denver.)

Lori is in her mid-sixties and retired from a career as a Child Treatment Coordinator for a group of local counties in the Salem area. She smiles big and often and pulls people right in with her easy comfortable style. Lori and her husband, David, have been married for 33 years. Between them they have 6 children, 14 grandchildren, and 5 great grandchildren.

Lori first came to the Down to Earth Studio in 2022. She had taken an art class from me downtown and was curious about SoulCollage®. She was receiving acupuncture treatments for anxiety related to medical testing and mammograms.

“My mother died of breast cancer when I was 15, and I carried a lot of trauma from that experience,” Lori said. “A friend had recommended acupuncture as a remedy for the anxiety and panic I experienced whenever I faced any type of medical testing.

“The accupuncturist knew that I had lost my mom at an early age, and he knew that I liked to do art. He suggested that doing more art might not only connect me to the memory of my mom, but also help ease my anxiety. That was beginning of getting more into art. My mom had always encouraged me to do art. She sent me to crafting camps and always bought me art supplies for my birthday and Christmas. But when my mom got sick, I stopped doing any art.”

The first few times Lori came to SoulCollage® gatherings in my studio, she could barely speak up. When the time came for her to share, she dropped her head and her face turned bright red. She was visibly uncomfortable sharing any feelings or reactions. I was surprised when she came back again, month after month. I asked her what kept her coming back.

“When I started coming to the studio," she said, "it was all new. I didn’t know anyone, and I had never done any type of soulful or spiritual artwork. Everyone was so welcoming, and hearing what other people had to say helped me. I didn’t come in consciously thinking that SoulCollage® would heal from past trauma, but it definitely has helped. I began to share things I had never spoken out loud to anyone before.”

I asked Lori if she had made a SoulCollage® card that held special meaning for her.

“Yes,” she said. “The last two cards I made in the studio. For me, they go together. One is a broken heart that’s been stitched around and repaired. The other is a girl who is backed by medals and has gems in her hair. One is the healing heart—more tragic—and the other is coming out of that, strong and beautiful. I’ve earned medals. Making these cards felt so good.

“Being able to create art from my subconscious and talk about it has really helped me deal with the loss of my mother and the trauma I experienced as a child. My mother’s death was never talked about in my family. She was just gone. Being able to talk about it through my art is something I’ve never been able to do. Ever. SoulCollage® really works for me.”

Here is what Lori says she has learned about herself through SoulCollage® gatherings.

“Two things: one is to be patient with myself. Sometimes it takes me longer than others to know what the cards are telling me. I’ve gotten better at accepting that I don't always know what I’m seeing or feeling until I’ve had the chance to be with the card awhile.

“The other thing I’ve learned is trust. When my mom died, I didn’t feel like anyone was there for me. My first husband had numerous affairs. Because of those experiences, I learned not to trust others, especially women. When I was younger, I saw women as competition. I never felt close to other women until I came to SoulCollage®. Now I have a group of women friends who are very special to me. We have a wonderful time together making art and sharing our lives.”

I asked Lori what advice she would give someone who is just starting out.

“I would say relax. Let yourself create and don’t worry about making the wrong thing. Everyone was a beginner at some point. Keep trying and give yourself time to get better at it. People put pressure on themselves to do well at the start, but it takes time.”

How has working with art and SoulCollage® in the Down to Earth Studio changed Lori’s life?

“I feel more open and bright,” she says. “People smile at me more.”

Lori shared that many of her art pieces displayed on her walls of her home. It makes her so happy when people walk into her house and say, "Wow, this looks like an art gallery!"

I imagine Lori’s mom watches her from the other side of the veil with pride and loving encouragement.

Art on, Lori. 

Here are photos of some of Lori's SoulCollage® cards and artwork.

Saturday, April 25, 2026, 11:30 to 5:00 pm

Art Department Supply Store, Salem, OR

Join us for a full day of creative play as we transform ordinary paper into extraordinary collage fodder. In this hands-on workshop you'll explore a wide variety of techniques for altering paper—from masking and paint layering to stenciling, mark-making, samping, and special effects.

No experience necessary, just a willingness to experiment and get your hands dirty.

Working in a supportive, energizing atmosphere, you'll create unique papers ina beautiful array of colors, patterns, and textures, building a rich stash ready for your future collage and assemblage projects.

Leave with not only armloads of gorgeous papers, but also the confidence and skills to continue creating your own collage materials at home. This is paper-making as pure joy— messy, freeling, and endlessly creative!

Workshop fee: $95 includes a supply list. Instructor will also bring materials to work with. Register at the Art Department here.

with GG and Dayna Collins

Tipi Village Retreats

Marcola, Oregon

June 11 - 15, 2026

Imagine spending five days nestled in the sanctuary of a rich green forest next to a babbling brook, sleeping in a cozy bed, being pampered with gourmet food, playing with paint and collage, and renewing that spontaneous, juicy, creative, soulful part of yourself. It’s all yours to enjoy in a community of kindred spirits.

GG and Dayna Collins will be your midwives clearing the way for you to step out of what you think is true about your creative self, and step into an environment where you feel free to birth whatever wants to be expressed.

Through a series of experimental exercises with paint, paper, and written and spoken words, you will explore a variety of techniques designed to bypass creative blocks and connect deeply with your personal serendipitous muse. Whether you’re a seasoned artist or just starting to explore your creative potential, this workshop offers a supportive environment where you can freely experiment, awaken the subconscious, discover new creative pathways, build creative muscle, and develop a more profound connection with your mysterious and creative Self.

The  Tipi Village Retreat center is a haven away from the ordinary. Located in the Mohawk Valley near Eugene/Oregon, it is the perfect location to step out of daily life for four days and step into a place where you are held by majestic trees and nourishing waters. Meander along the trails, nap in the shade, soak in the hot tub, or dip in the swimming hole, this place is intimate and magical – truly one of Oregon’s hidden emerald gems. Bring your swimsuit and dive in!

This retreat is full. Contact GG to get on the waiting list.

Watch a short video from last year's retreat below.

August 8 - 12, 2026

Seabeck Conference Center, Seabeck, WA

Once again I'll be teaching my Dynamic Mixed Media Collage class at Creative Arts Eliot. In this combination workshop we explore true mixed media by combining paper collage, painting, stenciling, and Posca pens to reveal "windows" of collaged delight.

Learn more and register here.

Friday evening September 18th through noon on Monday the 21st, 2026

Join us for a soulful retreat at the serene and healing grounds of Breitenbush Hot Springs: “The Return of Grace: Reclaiming the Sacred Feminine” SoulCollage® Retreat

Autumn + Sacred Feminine + Healing

In the golden hush of autumn, we mirror the Earth — letting go of what no longer serves, composting old identities, and preparing the inner soil for new life. Through SoulCollage®, council, ritual, reflection, and rest, we gather to remember the Sacred Feminine as she lives within and around us — the part of us that knows how to soften, receive, and heal.

Equinox invites us to balance the feminine and masculine energies within self and culture, doing our part to heal the wounds of overdrive, competition, and depletion through receptivity, intuition, and care. Guided by archetypes of the Sacred Feminine, we’ll explore the path to allowing the feminine to rise again, radiant and whole.

This retreat is full. Contact Breitenbush to get on the waiting list.

Solo Passage Book and

Oracle of the Sacred Path Card Deck

are both available on my website here.

Solo Passage Book: In this series of interwoven stories, GG chronicles her path toward healing through wilderness quests in the Pacific Northwest and Central California. Thorugh her connection to nature, she rediscovers the importance of self-esteem, forgiveness, acceptance, and standing in her own truth.

*****

Solo Passage Oracle Deck:

Birthed from the rhythms of the Earth and the whispers of the unseen, and graced by GG's original artwork and photography, this 65-card deck is a companion for wilderness questers, threshold walkers, and seekers of truth. Each card holds a question—a doorway to a theme, an archetype, or a symbol meant to speak directly to your Soul.