“Entertain, Educate, Empower, Inspire”

MA Creativity Studies student Natalie Daise has a mantra—entertain, educate, empower, inspire—which guides her life as a visual artist, performer, and “creative engineer.” She considers herself a story artist, “enamored with, seduced by, and immersed in story.” She not only tells stories, “the how of things and people and places; the becomings of them” in art, she also uses stories to educate and facilitate creative expression in others.

Some of you may remember her as Miss Natalie from the mid-1990s Nick Jr. show “Gullah Gullah Island.” Here are examples of her more recent endeavors. Natalie wrote and performed the one-woman show “Becoming Harriet Tubman,” at the Spoleto Festival the past two years, to positive reviews. See this link for one review. In 2013, she participated as a visual artist in three shows which featured her work with acrylics and cut paper. Follow this link for a description of one of these, a group show of African American artists in Beaufort, SC. Natalie also ran a workshop on St. Helena Island, SC. Sunny work surfaces and materials such as paint, clay, kiln, dyes, wax, beads, and gems were available to people of all ages to attend classes or come in “just because the door was open and connect with their creative self.” Natalie says that, “creating the space was an art expression in itself. It was like a living, active, installation with moving, breathing, pieces.”

As an MA student at Union, Natalie is exploring connections between creativity and community. She feels the Creativity Studies program has enhanced her understanding of the body of research on creativity and areas where research is lacking. For her applications course she is visiting studios of female artists in South Carolina to learn about the role community plays in their work, and their experiences and evolution as artists. At the same time, she is exploring what community means in her own creativity. Natalie hopes to develop a theory of cooperative creativity that she can use to “enhance the creative experiences of those with whom I interact,” and ultimately contribute to efforts to improve the process of education for children, and help people in marginalized communities access their creativity.

To see more about what Natalie is up to, you can visit her website: http://nataliedaise.com/