The Breath & the Clay is a creative arts gathering hosted by Stephen Roach of the Makers & Mystics Podcast. This weekend event explores the intersections of art, faith & culture in a communal setting.
The event includes performances, a curated art gallery and keynote talks from various creative voices from the Makers & Mystics podcast.
Join us March 22-24th 2019 in Winston-Salem, NC for a weekend connecting with other artists from around the world on this journey of art and faith.
Sarah Toth is a performer and writer who uses singing, spoken word, and improvisation within opera to courageously tell stories of truth, vision, and possibility. Through collaborations in music-based theater, Sarah seeks to bring healing, inspire dreams, and empower people to walk boldly forward in their own personal story.
In this episode Stephen talks with Sarah about her opera The Nero Monologues and her involvement in creating new and experimental music-based theater.
Kevin Cloud sees Hamilton as a “modern-day parable” that carries a depth of spiritual and transformative power.
In this episode, Stephen talks with Kevin about his perspectives on this Broadway musical and how the art form of theater has the ability to access the deeper parts of the human heart.
Russian artist Wassily Kandinsky is considered by many to be the father of abstract art. In this episode Stephen takes a look into the life and art of Wassily Kandinsky, particularly his interest in the relationship between sound and color.
Liz Vice is a singer/songwriter based in Brooklyn, NY. She is best known for her Gospel, Soul and R&B roots. On her latest album titled, “Save Me,” Liz breaks the mold of any one particular genre and explores a wide range of musical territory.
In this episode, Stephen talks with Liz about her creative process and the vulnerability within her songs and personal story of overcoming fear.
Nico Cox is an Antiquarian Horologist, which is a technical term for a clock and watchmaker who specializes in the conservation and restoration of antique automata and mechanical musical objects. Her workshop, Memoria Technica is located in Seattle, Washington where she teaches, creates and brings mechanical music, singing birds and complex clocks back to life again.
In this episode, Stephen talks with Nico about the magic of horology and the critical thinking involved in her unique art of restoration.
Patrons of the podcast can enjoy an additional interview with Nico on “The Church’s bizarre use of automata during Middle Ages” at http://www.patreon.com/makersandmystics
Sadhu Sundar Singh was a Christian mystic from the region of Punjab. His life was characterized by elaborate visions, long journeys and his own parables inspired by the life of Jesus.
CJ Casciotta is a writer and communicator who is passionate about helping organizations and individuals discover their inherent uniqueness. In his debut book, Get Weird, CJ asks the question, What if the outrageous, imaginative, crazy ideas that live inside your wildest dreams are actually there on purpose, divinely preinstalled to help others?
He says, Knowing what makes you weird is the best thing you can offer your art, your business, your friends, your family, and yourself. It's the essence of creativity, the stuff of movements, and the hope for humanity. It's time to quit painting by numbers, conforming to patterns, and checking off boxes. It's time to GET WEIRD.
In this episode CJ and Stephen discuss the ideas he presents in his book and unpack what it means to live fully and truly as that unique version of ourselves we were designed to be.
Cole NeSmith is the founder and Executive Director of the Creative City Project and producer of IMMERSE, an annual performing and interactive arts event in the heart of Downtown Orlando. Cole started the award-winning Creative City Project in 2012 to cultivate creative community locally and to help shape the global perception of Orlando as a place known for creativity and innovation. In this episode, Stephen talks with Cole about the role of the arts in cultural transformation.
Howard Finster was a folk artist and backwoods preacher from rural Georgia. He was known for his elaborate visions and the creation of his own Paradise Gardens. During the eighties, Howard's collaboration with the bands R.E.M. and Talking Heads catapulted him onto a global platform for his art and message.
Ben Stamper is a filmmaker and artist based in the northeastern United States. His work spans narrative, documentary and contemplative genres with a particular interest in the patterns of nature and human movement.
Ben has worked with groundbreaking artists and institutions, including Meredith Monk, the Paul Taylor American Modern Dance Company, New Chamber Ballet, and Matthew Rushing of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.
Ben’s recent projects include Grisha, which is a sign language film based on a short story by Leo Tolstoy, (C)arbon, which is a three-gallery video installation at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in collaboration with choreographer Andrea Miller and Gallim Dance.
In this episode Stephen talks with Ben about his intuitive approach to flmmaking, the role perception plays in our understanding of the world and the form of art he terms as “Visual Haiku.”
Nicholas Berdyaev was a Russian philosopher who believed our mission as human beings is to be collaborators with God in His continuing creation of the world. In this episode, Stephen highlights a passage from Berdyaev's book, The Meaning of The Creative Act on creativity and redemption.
Julia Frey is a London based food writer, photographer and blogger. After moving from Canada to the UK seven years ago with her husband and children, she was homesick and between jobs. In order to occupy herself and have a creative outlet, she started an online recipe journal called Vikalinka.
In this episode, Stephen talks with Julia about her inspirations, the art of food and how creativity extends beyond the fine arts into every aspect of life.
David Taylor is a professor of theology and culture at Fuller University in Houston, Texas. His work centers on revitalizing the church through the creative arts. He has written and edited several books including his most recent, The Theater of God’s Glory: Calvin, Creation and the Liturgical Arts.
In 2016, David produced a short film on the psalms with Bono and Eugene Peterson. He has lectured widely on the arts in both academic and popular settings, in the United States and abroad.
In this episode, Stephen talks with David about his work with Bono and Eugene Peterson as well as his perspective on the relationship between artists and the church.
Most people know Oswald Chambers as the author of the famous devotional, My Utmost For His Highest, but few people know Oswald was a passionate artist who longed to see the arts become a vibrant expression of faith.
Latifah Alattas is a singer/songwriter, producer, recording engineer and performer. Her project Moda Spira is a musical exploration of emotional honesty, characterized by intimate vocals and cinematic overtones.
In this episode, Stephen talks with Latifah about her upcoming album, her creative process and an in-depth look into her experience of journeying through grief.
Latifah has her own, companion podcast to the album which gives a song by song look into the themes and making of her record. You can listen and subscribe here.
Here is a link to Latifah's kickstarter campaign to support the making of her album.
Audrey Assad is a singer/songwriter from Nashville, Tennessee who has written and recorded ten albums to date, including her recent release, Evergreen. In this episode, Stephen talks with Audrey about the gut-wrenching deconstruction of her faith and the fertile ground of re-birth which fuels the concept behind Evergreen.
Erik Lokkesmoe is the owner of Aspiration Entertainment, a Nashville-based company that produces, markets and distributes “screen forward” entertainment for aspirational audiences. He is an executive producer of the 2015 New York Times Critics Pick film LAST DAYS IN THE DESERT, starring Ewan McGregor.
In this episode, Stephen talks with Erik about his work in the film industry and what Erik terms as "the middle place," where artists with a faith background engage the general market with creativity and conviction.
Hans Rookmaaker was a Dutch Scholar and art professor. He is most known for his book “Modern Art and the Death of Culture.” In this episode, Stephen discusses Rookmaaker’s views on art as an act of faith versus art as religious propaganda.
Amena Brown is a poet, speaker, author and event host. Named one of Rejuvenate Magazine's Top 40 under 40 Changemakers, Amena is the author of five spoken word albums and two non-fiction books: Breaking Old Rhythms and her latest release How to Fix a Broken Record.
In this season premiere episode, Stephen talks to Amena about success and failure, the effects of social media on artists and how vinyl records became one of her entry points to relationship with God.
