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emilysodders
♀️
[11799704]
[2009-10-07 14:53:46 +0000 UTC]
"Bird House Studio"
(United States)
# Statistics
Favourites: 255; Deviations: 84; Watchers: 171
Watching: 242; Pageviews: 27010; Comments Made: 5216; Friends: 242
# Interests
Favorite visual artist: Denis PetersonFavorite movies: The Island, The Phantom of the Opera, Avatar, Juno
Favorite TV shows: Project Runway, Whose Line Is It Anyway?, Gilmore Girls, Smallville, Game of Thrones
Favorite bands / musical artists: Josh Groban, Charlotte Church, Coldplay, Enya, Iron & Wine, Casting Crowns
Favorite books: Bible, Lord of the Rings Trilogy, The Five Love Languages, Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University, A Song of Ice and Fire Saga, Men Are From Mars Women Are From Venus
Favorite writers: George R.R. Martin
Favorite games: Apples-To-Apples, Bananagrams, Risk, Freecell, Scrabble
Favorite gaming platform: Don't play video games.
Tools of the Trade: Color Pencils, Oil & Acrylic Paints, Charcoal, Digital Camera, Photoshop
Other Interests: Reading, Writing, Camping, Fishing, Organizing, Financial Counselling, Learning
# About me
Howdy!My name is Emily Sodders, and I am the owner and sole artist of Bird House Studio based in Gilsum, New Hampshire (though I was born and raised in Texas). I do have some formal education, but I am predominately a self-taught artist with many mentors (as it should be) and have been working professionally for nearly a decade. As far as my creative services go, I specialize in color pencil portraiture, residential and commercial murals, graphic design, face-painting, art parties, workshops, and have a handful of apprentices (part of my "Feathered Friends" program); all of which you can explore in greater detail on the Official BHS Website (however certain pages are under construction or are being updated, so please be forgiving! lol).
And while serving the creative needs of my community pays the bills and brings me immense joy and satisfaction daily (blessings far beyond what I deserve), my mission as an artist goes above my career goals and merges with my faith and spiritual goals as a Christian. In 2012, I began developing a series of sketches for an ongoing fine art collection which I have titled "EvangArts" because in many ways, they will serve as visual evangelizing. To summarize the varied complexities of the series, I will simply say for now: for all those who would rather "see" a sermon than hear one, this is for you, although, not to the exclusion of hearing and studying for yourself, of course! But ultimately, this series is what I believe God has laid on my heart to produce to further His kingdom, using the greatest talent He gave me. I'm not claiming to be "inspired" in the manner that God's prophets and apostles were; as I assure you I am quite capable of fallacies- but each piece will be the culmination of much prayer and Biblical scholarship. Lord-willing, these artworks and/or their printed counterparts will tour around the country (perhaps the world): an artistic mission trip in which church buildings become the galleries and souls might be won and encouraged to grow in the faith by learning from God's Word and not the vain doctrines of man, unifying the body of Christ.
I'm a pretty simple person. I live in a cute little house on some woody acres with my wonderful and wise husband, our two Black Lab/ German Shepard mix boys (known as the 'mini-horses'), and four cats. We enjoy working our land and creating a sustainable homestead. We are currently planning an orchard and extending our sizable garden. Because so many have asked over the past few years of our marriage: yes, we want to extend our family to include children in a few years, but we would like to secure ownership of our land and home first by paying off the mortgage early, as well as other small debts. Plus, some of the goals listed above, including EvangArts, would benefit by not having to change diapers every few minutes! My husband is also an artist- more specifically a martial artist. He is a 3rd Degree Black Belt in Shaolin Chuan Fa/Jui Jit Su and a 2nd Degree Black Sash in Shaolin Kung Fu training under Grandmaster Steve DeMasco and is chief instructor at the Keene, NH SDSS location. I webmaster for the SDSS NH Website . I love that we can share our arts with others every day. We are both very passionate about what we do. We enjoy hiking, camping, and many other outdoor adventures and activities. Snuggling up in bed together to read a book out loud with dogs and cats on either side is one of our favorite way to cap the night!
I really enjoy the artistic fellowship on Deviant Art. It is a pleasure to have DA on an open web tab while working from my studio and watch what others are creating in real-time, at all technical levels, media, and styles. I especially love artists who have a sincere purpose driving them to create artwork, outside of the general passion for creating. I believe God gave mankind the ability to create so that we could understand why He creates. And if you are in touch with your spirit, Your Supreme Creator, if you know of your higher-calling, what you create is only as important as why you created it. Who is the glory for? If you create for something bigger than yourself, I want to know about it. I want to watch you. I watch a growing number of artists who have mastered the art of pleasing my aesthetic preferences, and that is well and good. But I really want to watch artists that are "doing" something with their art. Their art clothes the naked, feeds the hungry, builds hospitals, educates, inspires productivity, strengthens the family, communicates truths, passions, love, and more. Those artists will receive so much support from me, they will think I am their personal paparazzi.
If you would like to network with me on other social media just click on the appropriate links below! Just "like", "subscribe", "add", whatever, and I will return the favor!
Thanks!
God is good. <3
# Comments
Comments: 330
Thank you so very much for the llama badge! I appreciate it. It is so inspiring to read about your career as an artist as I recently changed my mind to pursue an art degree and it made me a little nervous to be truthful. I got nervous that I wouldn't be able to "make it" like everyone thinks. I'll try to remain positive and encouraged! Have a magical day :]
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Wow! You're totally welcome! Kinda wish I could give you another llama! Perhaps I will simply return the watch so that I can be your personal cheer-leader! 
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Ohmygosh wow so much :]
Yeah it definitely was. I have been talking to my uncle as well who has been developing his career as an artist through making connections and just being an active part of the art community here.
I know that art school isn't necessary, but my theory is this: I am already 3 years in (pursuing a different career) and figure I can complete an art degree in another two. I am so far already, I would at least like to walk away with something, you know? Besides, I figure any little bit of extra tips and tricks can't hurt either.
Definitely. I am not a party girl, I am focused and determined and will get this done! And I might end up at my part time job longer than anticipated, but any little bit helps and I can always create on my days off and when I get home.
No worries, it was really cool to get such a long response! It made me feel like you're really excited and supportive of my choice which in turn made me smile and have a bit more confidence and hope and determination. I appreciate it!
Thank you thank you thank you for the kind response and advice! It means a lot! Also, thank you for the watch :] Any little bit helps, and having a real artist on my side is definitely a huge step forward. I look forward to talking again, and admiring your work :] ! Thank you :]
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You are absolutely welcome. You're worth it, you know? I love giving thoughtful replies, even if my inbox is a mile long because of it. lol Glad to see you have it figured out and seem to have a good head on your shoulders about it. So go for it. I left college after 3 years without a paper in hand, but I'm not going to discourage you any further if you are determined to get it. I thinks it's a respectable thing to do. But if you keep the principle of taking your education and career in your own hands with or without the paper, you'll do fine.
Take care- and I look forward to your work in my watchfeed!
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You are so kind:] And I bet your inbox gets pretty long haha:]
I know it is not going to be easy, but I am going to keep reminding myself that I am taking my education and career in my own hands, like you said. No more listening to what other people have to say about whether I "should" do this our "should" do that. I am going to do what makes me happy and I am going to stay motivated and keep working hard! Thank you again for such kind words and all of the encouragement.
You take care too!:] I promise I shall post soon! Gotta get through this semester and then back to art :]
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I hear ya! The semester is almost over in many places, so hopefully that's not too much longer between you and art! I'm looking forward to your art in my watchfeed! (As it is, I do art full-time and am lame about posting it on DA! lol I should get around to it, as well!)
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Haha well I look forward to your art in my watchfeed as well! I hope you have a wonderful day :] Thank you for being so encouraging and such an inspiration!
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Great job on the set design for the play Emily.
It looked like you did a lot of work.
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Haha! Thanks! It was a lot of fun- everyone was great to work with! Which show did you go to? Vin and I went to the final showing last night, though we were witness to many of the rehearsals and run-throughs. That was the first time in many moons I have set painted, not that it is that different from mural painting...lol!
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I went to the last show too. Samamtha is a friend of mine so I came to see her. It was a fun show.
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Oh awesome! She did such a great job as Ceil! We carpooled to Mole Hill a few times. Now I wonder if we "saw" each other but didn't recognize each other out of context of the art show. I do that a lot with people I've only met once or twice- and there certainly were a few folks at that show that I've seen elsewhere, but couldn't place them. Maybe you were one of those! lol Well, thanks for coming!
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I wish I could take a walk outside and have everything look like your paintings...
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Awwwww! Thanks!
...now my heart is a puddle on the floor!
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Thanks for joining . We appreciate your support and we are glad to expose your art.
To get started we have some information for you:
Our submission guidelines [link]
You may submit shots in our current month folder [link]
and journals in this folder [link]
Every month we are voting on the best submissions of the month as for example here [link]
if you have question note me please
we would also appreciate any active participation in our group – every suggestion is welcome
we wish you many happy ours in our group and are seeing forward to your submissions
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Thank you SO much! I cannot express in words how much I appreciate what your support has caused in me. Likewise, God bless, and ten-fold.
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Can I just say that you are a breathe of fresh air on this site? Not often here do I encounter someone who sees the blessings in life and truly exudes joy. Thank you for being that illustration of Matthew 5:14.
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Such high praise is of far greater value to me than any creative merit received on DA, or outside of it, for that matter. From one city on a hill to another, know that your efforts to fight the good fight have not gone unnoticed- and are cause and inspiration for said joy.
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A warm welcome to , I really appreciate you joining.
If you need any help or have problems, please feel free to contact us!
Hugs BiBi
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Many thanks for adding me to your deviantWATCH
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My pleasure! Keep up the great work!
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Thank you for submitting your Seeing Red artwork to
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My pleasure. I look forward to submitting more work in the future.
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Welcome to Muralz 
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My pleasure! As a muralist, I am happy to find a DA community in celebration of murals!
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Thank you so much for faving my art!
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