About

Laura (Kaplan) McGreevy

On her wedding day surrounded by flowers!

Photo credit: Hitch Studios RI

Laura wanted to be an artist her entire life, but it wasn’t until a worldwide pandemic forced her to take her art-making more seriously that she felt comfortable calling herself one. Furloughed from work, she quickly realized that having this extra time could be regenerative, rather than devastating.

Throughout 2020, Laura experimented with her favorite form of art-making: mixed media collage. She was quite prolific at the time. It gave her a sense of purpose and routine when there really was none for her.

As time went on, and going back to her job in the way it was before seemed less likely, a memory from work inspired her to start drawing, in addition to her collage work.

Prior to becoming furloughed and eventually laid off, Laura worked at Resources for Human Development in Rhode Island, an arts-based day program for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. She supported participants in their own artistry and taught a nature-based art-making class.

Many of the people she worked with have left ever-lasting impressions on her life, but there was one person in particular who she credits as inspiring her to begin drawing again.

There was a man who would ask her to draw him pictures of his favorite cartoons. Having long felt self-conscious of her perceived (in)ability to draw, she was apprehensive. But, this was part of the job. Once a drawing was finished, she would laugh and spew apologies. She started posting some of the drawings on social media, dismissing them as “#badart.” Meanwhile, the person she was drawing them for took them home happily at the end of each day, no matter how bad she thought they looked.

Fast forward to nowadays, and she unashamedly proclaims herself an artist.

Her art is different at times than before and she likes to experiment with new mediums, such as junk journaling, book binding, and using her amazingly strong glue gun to attach toys and other fun objects to wreaths and anything else she can think of.

Her biggest project over the last few years was planning and designing her beautiful wedding, and now that she is happily married to her husband Ryan, she is happy to finally return to her artful way of life. (Although, if you ask her, planning a wedding is an art form, too!)

As she gets “older,” more confident, and wiser, she realizes that the fountain of youth comes from playing, decorate herself and her homes with bright colors and fun designs, embracing her inner child and continuing to practice and feeding that younger version of herself the activities that she loved the most, and doing the things she dreamed of one day doing.

Laura lives in Providence, RI with her husband Ryan and their bird, Pesto. She spends a lot of time decorating the walls of their apartment with art and adorning their space with crystals. She has a master’s degree in humane education and in addition to making art enjoys writing, thrift shopping, and watching & making funny TikTok videos.

Please email laurahasheart@gmail.com to inquire about purchasing specific art or requesting commissions.