(Re)connecting to Art

Have you struggled to continue your artistic practice recently, or considering starting a new one? How do we stay engaged and reimagine a better world? Join us for a cross-disciplinary discussion as we take time to explore how artistic work and creative expression can be supportive of transformation during times of upheaval. Panelists will reflect on how the arts help us reconnect, build resilience, and help us navigate a chaotic world undergoing dramatic change. We will embrace questions around what is it that allows you to make art and how do you get to it in a world—and with a mind—filled with obstacles?

Panelists include: Madison author Dale M. Kushner, jazz pianist and teacher Wilder Deitz, and spoken word artist Charles Payne. Facilitated by Catherine Stephens, music instructor and community arts advocate.

Event includes a workshop activity and an opportunity for audience questions.

This event is past but you can still watch it or our YouTube channel.

Download our free (Re)connecting to Arts Resources PDF.

Dale Kushner

Dale M. Kushner is an award-winning American novelist, poet, and essayist who explores the mysterious terrain of the human psyche and its transformation in her work.

Holding an MFA in Creative Writing from Vermont College of Fine Arts, Dale has a deep interest in dreams, creativity, and personal transformation, which was enriched by her study of Jungian depth psychology at the C.G. Jung Institute in Switzerland. There she explored the unconscious, synchronicity, and the archetypal patterns that influence our lives This background profoundly shapes her writing. Dale’s latest book, Wild Freedom: The Princess Who Found Her Name — On Fairy Tales, Imagination, and the Creative Mind, will be published in May 2026 by Chiron Publications and is a hybrid work of fairy tale, memoir, and reflection that explores imagination as a vital psychological and spiritual practice.

Dale is also the author of the popular monthly... Read More

Wilder Deitz

Wilder Deitz grew up playing on tour with his father, singer-songwriter Ritt Deitz. Wilder started leading his own groups in middle and high school, eventually studying creative music under NEA Jazz Master Richard Davis at the University of Wisconsin. Since then Wilder has performed on festival, opera house, and performing arts stages across the Midwest, as well as on television and the radio. Today Wilder serves as Creative Director for the Wilder Deitz School for Creative Music, and splits his time between touring with his band and passing on his craft to the next generation of creative musicians.

Charles Payne

Charles Payne won Arts + Literature Laboratory’s inaugural ALL Originals Prize for his poems "Dead End" and "Dinner with a Pig." This was his first national publication. Charles Payne is a Madison transplant, a certified teacher, and a self-taught social artist from Michigan. As a child, he loved hearing the sound of Paul Harvey's voice, their innate ability to describe every intricate detail truly inspired Charles to tell stories himself. And, yes, Charles can't wait to give you the rest of the story.

Catherine Stephens

Catherine Stephens is a musician, and she provides support for teaching and learning, and instructional design. She holds a M.A. in Education and is a community arts advocate. She has worked with the Goodman Community Center, UW-Madison in the School of Education, and Edgewood College. Catherine advocates for access to the arts, and serves on the Arts + Literature Laboratory Literary Arts Team. She teaches piano lessons privately and with Music con Brio after school program, and she helps coordinate art events for the Goodman Community Center After School program. She sings with the Wisconsin Chamber Choir and the ARTemis Women's Choir at Madison’s LunArt festival.

PLAN YOUR VISIT

Arts + Literature Laboratory is located at 111 S. Livingston Street #100, Madison, Wisconsin, 53703.

Our galleries are open Tuesday through Friday 10am-5pm and Saturday noon to 5pm, and other programs take place throughout the week. Please check the events calendar and education section for details.

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