With the stroke of a paintbrush, painters can create their very own masterpieces. The Bemidji Eagles Club welcomed an avid group from We Love Messes to showcase their creative talents and bond with one another.

“It puts us all kind of on the same level,” said Tammy Schotzko of We Love Messes. “It’s just like organizing, everything looks different to each individual person, so to come and hang with the team and each do a different painting and see that we’re all working toward a common goal, but everybody’s painting looks just a little bit different is kind of fascinating.”

You don’t have to be Pablo Picasso to express your artistry. Amy Benedetti with GypsyCanvas didn’t go to school for art, but has always been passionate about it.

“People see things every day with their eyes and they’re just able to put in on a canvas and it’s kind of fun,” said Benedetti.

We Love Messes participates in painting class with Gypsy Canvas at the Bemidji’s Eagles Club.

Beneditti walks you step by step, and there are no such things as mistakes in acrylic painting, because it will all come together in the end. Each portrait is distinctive and requires you to use your imagination to create. Painting can also be therapeutic.

“We’re all stressed in our lives, and when you paint it’s just really cool to see people just release that and have fun with what they’re putting on their canvas,” said Benedetti.

For Rachel Lundy, this is her second painting class, and she used a simple blending technique. No experience is required, and that may be the
beauty of it: the freedom to use a brush and canvas to tell a story. Lundy’s family inspired her portrait.

“I picked the quote, “Home Is Where The Heart Is,” said Lundy. “We just moved here from Chicago, with my family, so even though we moved from our original home up to Bemidji, our home is still together, because we’re still a whole family as one.”

These portraits can last a lifetime. Benedetti’s motto is free your mind and the brush will follow. That’s exactly what these ladies did and at the same time they improved their team building skills.

You can find more information on GypsyCanvas on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/paintingfun101/.

By — Haydee Clotter