Welcome The Outdoors In With Watercolors of Vibrant Birds and Nature

Lagom Artist Profile: Kasey Briggs

By Jan Milliman

Kasey Briggs just picked up the keys to her new studio and started of in a long-awaited new adventure.

Although Briggs has always felt the pull to do creative work, after graduating from RIT with a graphic design degree and working in the field for a while, she started a family and made the decision to stay home with her children. For a long time, she didn’t find time for much creative work beyond scrapbooking.

As her kids got older, she took a full-time job. There would be times when she’d fit in some creative projects and other times when she’d go months and years without picking up her watercolors and painting. There’s a push and pull with life and kids, she says.

But she kept feeling that creative pull and not so long ago, she started watercolor painting again and making prints and cards that feature her original work. Cheerful birds, vibrant summer fruit, animals and outdoor scenes are her frequent subjects. Her pieces bring a pop of color and a little bit of nature wherever they are displayed.

When the Coronavirus struck, Briggs went part-time at her most recent job as a leasing agent. Now she had extra free time, but she also had teenagers at home,making it tricky to really focus on her art. She needed to find her own space

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Briggs reached out to a friend who was renting studio space in Brockport, NY at just the right moment. The new building owner was rehabbing the building and adding two studios. And now, here she is a few short weeks later, moving into studio space of her own conveniently near her home. “It couldn’t have come together any better,” she says.

With the move to the studio comes an even bigger move for Briggs. She’s following that creative pull to become a full-time artist. “God has plans for me and it wasn’t to stay where I was,” she says.

At Lagom, you’ll find prints of Briggs’ watercolor paintings featuring birds and nature, framed pieces, cards, and wall hangings. And from time to time you’ll spot her work printed on pouches or pillows.

You might just run into Briggs herself. Lagom’s owner, Brooke, is Briggs’ sister, but that’s not the only reason she’s a frequent visitor. “I love what she puts in there. I love her style, I love the feel,” she says. Plus, “I have two grandkids and I shop for them there. It’s my go-to gift shop, it’s my go to splurge.”

Recommendations

Being creative: Making something can be therapeutic and help you through a lot of things, Briggs says. “Art can be a therapy.” And your work doesn’t have to be anything amazing – it’s just for you – spending that time outside your head and just playing.

Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace: Briggs was preparing to set up her studio at the same time a lot of people were stuck at home due to the Coronavirus and clearing out things they no longer wanted. Briggs found plenty of treasures she could put to use in her new space.