"Write Your Name"

📝 Happy National Tell A Story Day. ☀️

Here’s the intro to “Write Your Name”…

a poem I wrote for my wonderful high school students, back in 2017. 

Cherish at GDP's "HOME"

This SATURDAY ! ✨

I’ll be performing a solo rendition of @cherish.dance ‘s new piece, “Higher Ground.”

You can catch its premier alongside a whole bunch of other lovely performances, including dances by @gwinnettdanceproject and @bluebirduncaged …

Tickets are pay-what-you-can and 10% of donations goes toward Ukraine relief.

Eventbrite Ticket Link

Hollow Bones

So happy to support this lovely artist and her dancers.

"Hollow Bones" by Nadya Zeitlin and Bautanzt Here, part of the Art on the Atlanta Beltline exhibit

Here's a little poem/thought flow that I wrote yesterday, after seeing their work...

~~

Functional Bones

The idea of a shell
of a mold, an encasing
an expectation...
Who are you with it ?
Who are you without it ?
How are you united with others ?
And how are you separate ?
How do you move in your own story ?
How do you change roles and witness
or participate in other stories ?
How do you witness your own ?
What does it mean to be seen ?
To be protected ?
To be exposed ?
How are you connected to your surroundings ?
What do you see as a burden ?
As a success ?
Who is watching you ?
And how do you take responsibility in your response... ?
What have you abandoned ?
And who have you become ?
What rests inside your own bones ?

~RN

Vulnerability

"Vulnerability is not winning or losing. It's having the courage to show up and be seen when we have no control over the outcome." ~Brené Brown

Here is a moment from "Joyful," performed by Cherish Dance

Captured by Cody J. Jacques

From our Peace Day Celebration 2021, raising awareness and support for Peace One Day.

"in the rose-pink clouds"

A poem I wrote for my grandmother, who passed away in 2015. She is remembered and missed everyday.

"in the rose-pink clouds"

"...tell me how this life will form
the next life
and tell me how they never end..."

~RN

April Art Prompt

April showers bring May flowers, but what's stopping you form growing now ??

Often, if we can identify the things that aren't working well for us, it's so much easier to remember the things that help us flourish.

Ah yes, that self-care routine. That workout soundtrack. Oh hey, what's my awesome friend up to, that I haven't talked to in eons.

So this is our April Prompt :

Figure out what helps you grow and capture it through any medium you enjoy--photography, doodle, dance, song, etc.

And don't forget to tag us when you share your #canicolornowmoment. We'd love to hear from you and help fill the world with more art.

~

RN

Poignant

At Cherish Dance, we often leave time to doodle and chat at the end of rehearsal.

It's a special time when we get to relax, cool down, and share a little bit about what's going on with our week.

It's a simple few minutes, when I've gotten to know my dancers in a way I wouldn't have otherwise.

I'm thankful for their trust and laughter and for the chance to be both silly and serious with them.

(Fun fact: This doodle was started way back in February of 2021. Since the goal isn't really about finishing, but exploring, I'm glad this one took the long way.)

marker on paper, 8 x 10

Original available. $10.

Schoom !

"Schoom !"

Felt so good to paint this and I actually have a few in-process photos for you...

What colors do YOU like to mix together ??

Original available. Paint on canvas, 8 x 10, $25.

"Walk With Me" Premier

We premiered "Walk With Me" at DanceATL's A.M. Collaborative Final Showing last week !

Words by Shannon Yarbrough, Performed by Josh Souane

Choreography by yours truly, Performed by Cherish Dance : Katelyn Roth, Nancy Glasscock, and I

Special thanks to Loren Catherine for reserving the studio space for us at CORE Dance. 

And thanks to Ruben de Rijcke for his filming expertise.

Who's ready to make something new with the next round of A.M. Collab ??

>> Watch "Walk With Me" on YouTube <<

3 Doodles

Ahh. The relaxing feeling of doodling.

All three of these are for my friend, Jacquelyn Pritz, whose quotes were so lovely, I couldn't pick just one.

The second print is Tagalog, meaning "kindred spirit, neighbor, or fellow humans."

Hence, the simple ovals looped together.

Hope you're having a very sunny Saturday.

Originals available. $10 each.

A.M. Collab Interview

 A little bit of interview, a little bit of dance !

Thank so much DanceATL ! Such a cool video.

A.M. Collab Final Showing

Next Saturday !! 

You can watch the new piece from Cherish Dance and see what we made together with Shannon Yarbrough, in a film ! 🎬

Visit DanceATL's website to find out more info. It’s free !!! 

March 12th, 6:00 PM, Windmill Arts Center

Part of the A.M. Collaborative Final Showing : Eventbrite Tickets

Lightly

I love these little flowers I made, painting next to my daughter at the kitchen table. They are small and fragile, as the title hints at…

“Lightly” by René Nesbit

paint on paper, 8 x 10

Original available, $15.

Joyful Heart

Dancing makes my heart sing. 🖤

Throwback Thursday to our performance of “Joyful” at Aatma Dance Studio…

✨ Cherish Dance ✨

Villanelle

3️⃣ panels. A story told specifically as a villanelle.

📝 This is in response to Shut Up & Write !’s prompt for a villanelle, part of a monthly writing challenge that I signed up for last spring. 

Yep, that’s right, last spring, as in, last year. 

So here’s to finally finishing things that you start ! 

This is not the most brilliant thing I’ve ever written, since the fixed rhyming structure was hard for me to conform to (I usually glide through free verse). 

I’ve also created these panels as a response to my own art prompt. (Remember January’s : What makes you sparkle ?) 

✨ Writing inspires and ignites me. It is an outlet for my worry and confusion, my heart and my biggest dreams. It is a place for me to put my tangle of observations and unravel them safely and without judgement. I have kept a journal since I was a kiddo, and putting ink to paper is still one of the most enjoyable activities that I do. 

Let us know what lights you up !

~RN 

"dome"

"dome" 

a poem from my book, A Branch, A Few Words

http://amazon.com/author/rnnesbit

Cherish Bear

My kiddo said, “I love my Cherish Bear !!!” 

In her loudest happy-yell-y voice. ☺️

You can gift someone their own giant squeezable teddy via the link below, and at the same time, show your support for Cherish Dance. 💟👉

https://www.customizedgirl.com/s/cherishdance

NACHMO Prompt #2

The one. The only. Alvin Ailey. 

This is in response to NACHMO Prompt #2.

❇️ MASTER ❇️

(Find an iconic dance photo and recreate it.) Ailey’s strength, agility, and passion have inspired me, since I first started studying modern dance, as a young person at Backstage Dance Studio in Vegas. 

His lines, poise, and intensity are felt viscerally through the screen, whenever I watch him dance. Ailey founded his own dance company, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, in 1958, which continues to perform and exhilarate audiences. 

Ailey believed that dance was for everybody.

What dance photo have you always wanted to recreate ? 

Join the NACHMO movement, here ! 🔽

NACHMO Dance

January Art Prompt

“What makes YOU sparkle ?” 

This is January’s Art Prompt. It’s already a week in, but hey, who’s counting. 

Let’s talk about what we love with prompt #8 !

Sometimes we forget about all the awesome people/stuff in our lives and need to remind ourselves of what makes our heart light up. 

Feel free to answer this in any format you’d like—take a picture, jot a not, swirl a dance onto the screen. 

And don’t forget to tag us at @canicolornowstudios when you share your #canicolornow moment. 

We’d love to learn from you and help fill the world with more art. 

~RN

Postcards !

 💌 POSTCARDS ! 💌 

Hand stamped and hand drawn by yours truly. 🖊

Another newbie for the new year, this was an idea from a friend after a long conversation about how to make my art more accessible. 

My dilemma was basically, I know what to do with a coffee mug or with a funny t-shirt, but what do you do with a painting ?? I don’t even have room in my own house for more art. Lol

So here’s to trying new things ! I definitely need some thicker paper, but it’s a start. 

What quotes/images would you like to see on them ?

Originals available. $10 for a pack of 3.

NACHMO Time !

It’s JANUARY !!!…. (Drummmmroll)… That means it’s NACHMO time ! 🤩

No, not your favorite snack, but NAtional CHoreography MOnth ! 

And what’s that, you may ask ? Why it’s your choreographic inspiration-fueled session of daily prompts, movement explorations, and connection to your fellow dance makers—the local and national NACHMO community. 

Prompt #1 ! ❇️ INTRODUCE ❇️

Hi ! My name is René and I love to make things. I am a dancer, poet, and painter. I am the founder of Can I Color Now Studios and the director of Cherish Dance. I believe that art is powerful and that it can help change and unite the world ! 💫

My NACHMO goal ? To make at least three new and different pieces (no length, topic, or genre holding me back). 😍

📸 taken at the amazing Cheaha State Park 

Join in the movement, here ! 🔽

NACHMO Dance

Welcome

Welcome to Can I Color Now Studios. 

Check out our YouTube channel and find out more about the art we love to create.

Pizzazz

New art for a new year. 

“Pizzazz” by René Nesbit

Just a splash of color I made one night, when I already had some paint out. Painting always leaves me with such a relaxing feeling.

paint on canvas, 4 x 5

Original available, $15.