My style, artistic vision, and philosophy are a reflection of my own personal journey in this world; free flowing and multi-faceted. I have a drive to create and to express myself through art, music, and writing. I love the energy of the creative process and the challenge it offers me. In both art and life I strive to achieve balance and beauty.
I wrote a poem that is my artist's statement because that is more "me". I couldn't get the line breaks to show properly before, but perhaps I'll get it right this time.



It is the way sunlight plays on skin

and turns every strand of hair to jewels,

the beauty of trees dancing in the prairie,

singing the years of rain and wind,

It is the pull of a leaf browned on the edges,

holding desperately to the last fleeting crimson,

Every tiny wing that alights just out of grasp,

the cloud so full I can taste it.

It is my folly, to chase wind,

try to capture her laugh.

Take it, freeze it, just the way I found it.

Wrap it, to open with each image.

It is lassoing that horse, feeling her muscles bunch,

tearing across flat plains and remembering -

the call geese make overhead, the sound,

the quiet, the air changing in fall.

It is the moon I met last night,

the blush on the grass this morning,

and it is all curled into the lash on his cheek,

captured in the meadowlarks puffing out feathers,

Breaking my heart, filling my soul,

teasing me onward, always hungering,

lusting for the pounding rhythm of a loaded brush,

a shutter shot.



©Sheri Lauren Schmidt, 11/25/2010

My decision to become an artist came very early in life. Some of my earliest memories are of drawing horses on scratch paper in my parent’s newspaper business when I was around 3 years old. In first grade I debated between a career in art or ballet. My mother informed me that ballet dancers had to travel a lot and that bit of information solved my dilemma, of course I have a different outlook on travel now. I have been working on my artistic skills ever since. I graduated with a degree in Fine Arts from McPherson College in McPherson, Ks in 1994. I continued with my art after graduation, but also pursued other career avenues. From 1994 to 1997 I sang in a duet, kept painting, and was employed as a graphic artist. In 1997 my husband and I purchased an existing graphic art business with the intent of marketing my art. During this time I also began to actively pursue mural painting as an art form. We ran our main street enterprise until February 2002 and then sold the graphic art portion. We moved to Colorado to continue our business in a thriving arts community and then with the arrival of our second child moved home to Kansas where we now reside. I've had the opportunity to sell artwork to many wonderful individuals and to put on a few small shows throughout the years. I've also enjoyed illustrating the "Just Folks" series for author Jerry W. Engler. I am currently working on a photography series for his upcoming poetry journal, tentatively titled "The Denver Platform". My other interests include many creative pursuits. I write poetry, songs, and journals in my free time. I love music; creating, singing, and listening. I enjoy animals, particularly dogs, and outdoor activities. Last, but not least, I enjoy being a mom and discovering a whole new level of creativity with child rearing and schooling my children.

Beverly Hills H.S, Joy & Sorrow used as dance back
1/8/2009
http://www.dance90210.com, Ca
United States

Highly Embellished Truth & Some Poetry
1/8/2009
Illustrated by Sheri Schm, Now available
United States

Interview with Newton Kansan
1/8/2009
http://thekansan.com/stor, Ks
United States

Healthy Lifestyle Wellness Center, ongoing display
7/6/2011
McPherson, Kansas
United States