Hi there, I'm Leslie Montana, and I'm an independent artist, but as they say, it takes a whole village. Contributing positive energy to the collective is an important part of my work. Yours too, I'm guessing, if you're here. Thanks for showing up.

Who I am, what I'm doing, and its evolution.
My work is about practical spirituality. What is that? I've been exploring this subject in-depth through my personal evolution, and my artwork. Learn more about the energy behind my work. 

My social media production schedule is not fixed. I sometimes write weekly, other times less frequently. Muse News is a Free publication. If you enjoy the quality and content of my work, please consider donating.

Your support goes a long way, and is always very much appreciated. It helps me continue to offer Muse News at no cost. For large donations, please contact me. New equipment, and studio overhead add up, and have risen lately. It's a lot to keep up with.

Read my work.

As of summer 2024 I began looking for new ways to reach out to my newsletter subscribers. At first, I published on SubStack, and not long after, also on Medium. Use the free-read links provided below to access articles on either platform. My Vlog is a work in progress. Visit my YouTube channel to learn more about that. And, of course, please subscribe to Muse News if you haven't already.

Articles with links to read are below.

• Everyday Expressions of Love [MEDIUM]
It's the little things that hold the world together.

Relationships are important to me. And it’s the quality of interaction that ranks highest. Yellow Rose in Rain circa 2008 is a watercolor I made shortly before heading for the West Coast, where I set… continue reading


• The Universal Language of ART [MEDIUM]
Creativity and Flow States Speak to Everyone.

As I go about the first weeks of 2025, thoughts surface leaving impressions in the form of words and images. With snow on the ground and single-digit temperatures, flowers hibernate in a restorative… continue reading

• Claiming Higher Alignment, Natures CTA. [MEDIUM]
How a Garden Visit Plugged me into my Power Source and Supercharged my Creativity.

A patch of colorful chard called. It didn’t grab my attention, it invited me through the joy in my heart. Mother Nature’s gentle yet unmistakable sound is constant, and we are wired for it. But our… continue reading


• The Light of Being is Visible. [SUBSTACK]
An oil painting from my early 20s, earliest impressions, and some random advice.

I made this painting in my early 20s. It was inspired by my delight in what oil paint could do and my experience of internal illumination. This tiny jewel of a piece came through as I was... continue reading

• The Origins of Art [SUBSTACK]
Our link to the numinous divine, and how Art helps us embody it.

Experience has shown me that the origins of art and the desire to create reside deep within hidden chambers of our hearts. Its direct connection to the numinous divine protects us. And, in turn... continue reading


• Food and Creative Nature [SUBSTACK]
Nourishment comes in many forms serving wellbeing on many levels.

Nature grows fresh new shoots when the right conditions and ingredients are present. Here, a handful of wheat berries on a dish, watered and exposed to a bit of sunlight and poof. The seeds... continue reading

• Being Real and Finding the Balance. [SUBSTACK]
An artists' identity is anyones' identity in times of extreme change.

A few days before the winter solstice of 2021, the image of a peony appeared in my minds’ eye. I prepared a drawing in anticipation of the painting that was to come. Curious about the name, I waited... continue reading

• Effortless, Very Hard Work. [SUBSTACK]
What's great about being an artist in the crazy times we live in.

When I look up from my computer this is what I see. (photo in post) The ripening wall in my studio is where works in progress hang. I like to work on many paintings in rotation, not just one. I’m up early... continue reading

• Art as a form of Reciprocity. [SUBSTACK]
Linked with elements, art and its creation provide ways to balance and re-create our reality.

My creative process is a type of reciprocity. As I listen, watch, and look deeply into the life of the flower, I’m participating in a dialogue. Each brushstroke is an expression of gratitude as... continue reading

• Building a monument to what you Love. [SUBSTACK]
Quality of attention, paired with our natural inborn ability to create determines the legacy we leave.

Flowering trees always get my attention, and not just mine but the many who journey annually to be with them in springtime. Branches laden with flowers are like giant wands with many... continue reading

• A Creatives' Relationship with Reality. [SUBSTACK]
Is art a way of escaping reality? Is it how we check out? Or is it actually how we check in?

Of the three recent Dahlia paintings in progress, this is my favorite. It expresses something different and fresh. It sings to me. Yellow, the color, has unusual characteristics in... continue reading

Nature creates, it activates, and so do we. [SUBSTACK]
What I learn from the way flowers glow, and grow. The miracle of Nature and stillness.

If I were describing a miracle, it could be that out-of-the-earth comes food. This came to mind as I harvested cucumbers from my vegetable garden yesterday. This miraculous sentiment... continue reading

• Look for Beauty, Find it everywhere. [SUBSTACK]
It's within each of us, often shrouded by endless chatter.

If you’re looking for something, you’re likely to find it. Eventually, it will turn up in your life in some way, shape, or form. Almost always with an element of surprise, the unexpected arrives... continue reading

• Dahlias, New platform, Beauty in your Inbox. [SUBSTACK]
New watercolor paintings, my newsletter is on a new platform, and ongoing summer musings.

A powerful solar month in the northern hemisphere, August brings hot summer days, garden harvests, and the roar of Leo season. Expression for the sake of joy is a very leonine trait... continue reading

Exquisite Paintings on the Nature of Flowers is a body of work based on a sophisticated visual analysis of Nature's frequencies = LOVE. My long-standing body of work, ongoing and now in phase two, began in the early 1990s and is the culmination of a lifetime quest—a sacred journey into the heart of Nature, Beauty, and healing the myth of separation.