Recently, Via Affirmativa was able to interview Shannon and Darin White. Shannon spends much of her time painting while Darin is working as a printmaker and as a sculptor. After meeting in second grade they have grown together to learn how to make a living doing what they love as artists. Below is a glimpse into their Kansas life and a joint venture that they call, BALM.

VAF: Is artwork something you two can do together or do you get in each others’ way?

Darin: That’s a good way of putting it. Yeah, I think we can.

Shannon: We kind of play off of each other.

Darin: We work with some of the same ideas but we approach them in different ways.

VAF: Shannon, I read somewhere that if you were to be an animal you would be a humble peacock.

Shannon: You have done some research. It used to be as if I was a peacock, so to speak, with my tail feathers closed. But I was reading about being a “display for God’s splendor.” This was very meaningful to me as an artist who had not been active in the arts for a few years. I studied the passage and the peacock and found these attributes to be applicable—it was a great natural symbol. It was a turning point for me in the process of re-becoming an artist to realize that my art has a spiritual purpose.

VAF: Both of you are involved in something called, “BALM.” What is BALM?

Darin: It stands for Beauty, Art and Life Movement. We are about connecting artists, healing relationships, creativity, truth and beauty—artists of any type: visual, musicians, poets, writers, film, dance, installation, print makers, sculptors, painters and the like. We usually get together for an evening around a theme that we have chosen.

VAF: Where do the people that you invite come from?

Shannon: Geographically, Kansas City and Lawrence. But because we are involved in the art community we meet a lot of people from all over.

VAF: What is it that connects everyone who is a part of BALM?

Darin: Many artists share the same creative drive and we are getting together based off of that. We are encouraging each other in that, we are focusing on that and it just naturally produces connections and relations and all sorts of things that are conducive to encouraging creative people.

Shannon: One person after our last gathering said that the group fulfills a deep need in artists to get together to connect and share over creativity. I think it fulfills a deep need in the artist community as a whole.

VAF: You mentioned healing relationships, beauty, and connecting artists. How are all of those things related in what you do?

Darin: If you just talk about art and don’t do it that doesn’t do much good. If you just talked about writing and never wrote you wouldn’t be much of a writer. We are encouraging each other. We need affirmation.

If you affirm somebody in what they are working on not only by saying, “yeah, you are doing a great job,” but also, “hey, what do you think about working on this…” You know the whole idea of the critique. It’s not necessarily a critique every time we get together, but if somebody is looking for that then it can be extremely helpful. And what it does is get somebody generated. They are excited about what they are doing again. So I think it is kind of a snow ball affect. If you are affirmed then you want to go work more and do more.

VAF: Do you find that the concept of BALM is a little bit self-serving as well—that it is meeting that need in your own life?

Shannon: Oh, sure. I think we went into it thinking that this might be kind of fun. We enjoy the gatherings just as much as anyone else does.

Darin: I think that as an artist, if you don’t show your work, if no one sees what you are doing…I mean that is just built in as an artist that you want people to see what you are doing and those talents that you have. It always jazzes people to show what they are doing. So I think that, yeah, it feeds into what we want to do too. That is built into us.

Shannon: We have a display company and we know that if you don’t put something on display it is not as likely to be appreciated, to be purchased. It is just going to sit away somewhere just like the paintings in our garage last week that we haven’t gotten out for years and we ended up sending to a gallery. These have been sitting in our garage for how long? That concept of showing your work is very important…and showcasing each others work.

VAF: Have you heard of the concept of VAF Art Slams?

Darin: Yeah, I really like that idea…we want to host one.

VAF: What you are doing already seems like a good description of what an Art Slam could be.

Darin: Yeah, I think ours would be a description of a general Art Slam rather than a specific niche like fine arts or printmaking or whatever. I love that concept.

VAF: What are some of the things you think about doing in the future with BALM?

Darin: It is on about a month or month and a half basis that we try to do something. A main underlying thing will be that we have a new theme each time.

Shannon: We try to stay out of the way. We provide just a little leadership. We want to go deeper than just shallow conversation and really deal with issues that come up—like relationships and beauty.

A few days ago I was able to interview Minneapolis designer Thomas Eickhoff. We met at the International Market Square or otherwise called, IMS.

The square contains four old warehouse and factory buildings now connected by a large roof which creates a courtyard beneath. As one walks around the courtyard connecting each of the old buildings they can access over 1500 manufactures in 70 plus show rooms. There are textiles from around the world, one-of-a-kind pieces of furniture, art galleries, kitchen showrooms, stone work, and you name it. You can shop for your home or corporation, but you must shop with a designer. It is here, in the courtyard restaurant, that we conduct our interview.

VAF: What is attractive about this place?

Tom: It is a necessity on one side because it is where I meet people to do my work. I take clients here to make selections and put designs together. But it is also a place of beauty. Design is about beauty…I take things that other people have created and take them to the next level and put those things together to create something even a step above what they were individually. This is where I shop.

VAF: Is there anything that you do not like about IMS?

Tom: There is a consumer culture here that promotes giving oneself to things…more is better. Who you are is often defined by what you have. I can relate, but my own life is often very different.

VAF: What do you mean? How do you see yourself contrasting this culture?

Tom: My house is how it has always been. I have never done anything with the house other than tear things apart. Not necessarily that I wouldn’t want to, but I’ve always ended up doing other things instead. When I get some money, instead of doing things on my house, I go to Russia or The Gulf after a hurricane. So basically, it is trying to live on a certain level of income rather than raising my standard of living as income goes up.

VAF: So you live more modestly than many of your clients.

Tom: Yes, I don’t take clients to my house. I don’t want them to think that is what they are going to get.

VAF: You said that you take trips to Russia. How did that come about?

Tom: In sixth grade I saw a movie. From that I was convinced that God wanted me to be a missionary. But in sixth grade that meant going to Africa and I didn’t want to go to Africa. Later when I thought about it I didn’t want to go be a missionary as a missionary. I wanted to go with a career. I’d given up on missions for quite a while and then the opportunity came to go to Russia. When I was over there I connected with all the architects and designers.

I ended up registering my design firm in Russia. To get visas I would write an invitation inviting myself to come to Russia. I’d go without being anything but who I am. I’d go as a designer. People who go as a full time missionary have to figure out ways to connect with people. Swarms of people don’t come to your door because you say that you are a missionary.

VAF: Is it ever difficult to integrate your faith with your work?

Tom: Unfortunately, some times beautiful things cost a lot of money. It’s hard when you present to a client a table for $4,000, just a little end table, and say “this would be a great design for your home” and you think, we could buy something for $500 and use $3,500 to feed poor children in Africa.

But it’s also not that simple. Does God really want a world designed by Wal-Mart? Would children in Africa actually get fed more if I told clients they should spend $500 on a mediocre design instead of $4,000 on the great one?

What I can do is live as I feel God has called me personally to live and let God use that in whatever way and with whomever God chooses.

VAF: You have Parkinson’s. How has that changed you?

Tom: It has made me more realistic about life and death. It has given me a better perspective I think…not living in the false world that we can ignore death along with the frailty of life and how we really don’t have control over those things. I have probably been more purposeful each day in realizing that today is the healthiest day of the rest of my life. The chance that I have until I am 90 to do the things I want to do is not there. I need to pack more stuff in each day. I have a ‘to do’ list already that I am not going to get done before I die. I am going to go to heaven with a ‘to do’ list.

VAF: What is your interest in Via Affirmativa?

Tom: It connects with who I am as a designer. It is nice being around a lot of like-thinking people. My sense in working with churches is that there is a huge pull away from beauty—partly because most people associate beauty with money, with the costs.

I volunteered to help with a church project and in the first meeting that I went to the chairman turns to the architect and says, “is this needed or is this just aesthetics?” That sent a chill up my spine. Just aesthetics? What do you mean ‘just aesthetics’?

Why does humanity need different colored eyes and to have hair with different textures? Did the Zebra need its stripes? You take all the aesthetics out of it and what do you have? I think believers should have the most appreciation for things beautiful and for the arts.

*You can view more of Thomas Eickhoff’s thought and work at his blog by clicking here.