a beautiful creative soul.
renegade. amazing mixed media artist. teacher. calligrapher.
heart of gold. gentle but fierce. vibrant spirit.
a TRUE inspiration.
but most of all a LOVING friend.
she was the most kindhearted and giving person..always there to listen.
Lisa Engelbrecht touched the lives of many people with her heart of gold and her beautiful artwork. She was a renegade. She was an activist. She was a loving mom. She was a passionate teacher and loved to share her gift of creativity with the world. Her smile was infectious and her gentle but fierce, vibrant spirit lit up a room.
{photo above: lisa playing in my class at Int'l Quilt Festival}
Watching Lisa paint was magical, the pens and brushes danced across the page so gracefully.
I have so many fond memories of our late-night conversations, teaching trips, dinners and creative adventures.
{photo above: vinage shopping with Lis in Long Beach}
I met Lisa about 10 years ago when I took a calligraphy mixed media workshop she taught in San Francisco. I remember the calligraphers in the workshop were creating these beautiful pieces then throwing them away because they weren’t perfect. So I went around and collected everyone’s discarded colorful papers and paper towels to use as collage pieces. Lisa laughed and loved that I was encouraging others to use their “leftovers” and that was the beginning of our wonderful friendship.
Over the years, I was fortunate to spend a lot of time with Lis {not a typo, that's what I called her :)} while we taught at various events like Artfest, International Quilt Festival, Art Unraveled and Art and Soul.
After I moved from my house in Venice, CA, I traveled for six months and Lisa let me leave my car and art supplies at her house while I was on the road. In between my teaching trips, she opened her home to me and invited me to stay as long as I needed. There were numerous times, I prepped and packed workshop supply kits on her kitchen table. My luggage, boxes and art supplies covered her living room floor and she didn’t mind.
She was such a great host, every time I came to visit, she put together a little guest kit with soaps, goodies and towels. She always made me feel right at home.
We had many yummy dinners always seeking out Thai , Mexican or some other exotic food. We would talk about life, art and creative business. I’d tell her about my love life and we would have a lot of good laughs.
Once I moved back to the Bay Area, when I visited LA, she always had an open door. If I needed anything she would be there unselfishly willing to help out. She was an wonderful friend and confidante.
The world was a better place with her in it.
{above photo..the Long Beach/ LA sunset from outside Lisa's house}
Lis..thank you for everything...I am blessed to have known you and have a wonderful friend like you in my life. Thank you for your love, support, encouragement and most of all your warm and welcoming smile and hugs.
rest in peace dear friend. you will be missed. love you.
