Dawna Magliacano, one of Murfreesboro’s many talented local artists, doesn’t believe in the term “starving artist.”

“How could you be starving when you get to feed your soul every day doing the things you love most?” And she has lived the life to back up that statement. Having worked her entire life to attain that elusive balance between being a working artist, raising a family and maintaining a salaried career, she finally decided to take the leap into committing herself fully to the arts.

Dawna reflected on the years she spent using her kitchen table as her studio; “I was a single mom, and I supplemented my income with craft and art fairs, working sometimes all night to get enough inventory ready for a show.”

Leaving her day job behind, she opened the Art Barn in Rockvale, Tenn., in 2011, which has become her working studio and a space for teaching workshops and classes.

“It took me a good many years to get to this, but once I did, I trusted that the source of [my] gift would take care of whatever I needed, if I committed fully to it.”

The Art Barn hosts art sales in the spring, fall and winter holiday seasons, and has also become a co-sponsor of Murfreesboro Art Events such as the second annual Folk’n Art Fest at Mayday Brewery. The first festival was a huge success, building up much excitement for the 2014 festival taking place on July 26.

“We are growing the number of art vendors from 19 the first year to 50 this year,” explains Dawna. This year they will also feature 11 folk singers and a bike race to benefit the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.

In addition to the Annual Folk’n Art Fest, Dawna and the Art Barn are also working with Mayday to showcase local artists at the brewery on a regular basis, rotating work monthly. The exhibits aspire to show “outside-the-box art that matches Mayday’s fun and eclectic vibe,” bringing a flavor to the local art scene outside of the “typical, though greatly appreciated, still life and landscape genres.” Examples of the themed art we can expect to see at Mayday this year are “At the Seaside,” with submissions that depict sea monsters, mermaids, pirates, etc., “Vintage Circus,” and “Robots” just to name a few.

Dawna’s work was also recently featured in her very own solo show at the Center for the Arts entitled, “The Many Dimensions of Dawna Magliacano; A Mixed Media Artist.”

“Since the focus of my work is mixed media, it’s exciting to have the Center for the Arts embrace this kind of art.”

Like most artists, Dawna doesn’t feel she has reached her greatest accomplishment just yet.

“I have had some very proud moments, but I am still a very eager student. I am ever striving to be better and grow as an artist,” she said. “I often feel like I am only just skimming the surface of what I am truly capable of.”

As for the challenges she has faced as an artist, she says the hardest thing has been staying true to her voice of what she wants to create rather than focusing on what might sell.

“It’s a tightrope sometimes because you want your work to sell, it’s how we make a living.”

Despite that nagging feeling of needing to “pay the bills,” Dawna strives to stick to creating what her soul and muse are telling her to make, regardless of sales.

Dawna has lots of wise advice to offer other artists, especially those who are also parents like herself. “If you’re an artist, you simply have to create; it may be in stolen hours around sleeping babes, but if that’s what you were brought here to do, somehow you have to find a way. Juggle what you have to, get rid of what doesn’t feed your soul, ignore anyone who tells you ‘you can’t make art,’ and make more art.”

As for the future of Murfreesboro’s art community, Dawna, like many others, are working hard to see it grow to its full potential. She shares the common desire for all of the different artists and groups to really connect with one another, growing into one large committee that could be responsible for things such as honoring our local artists with awards and scholarships and curating Art on the Square during peak seasons. She would also like to see artists take over a portion of our downtown area and really make it the “artful part of town” with “studio after studio and gallery after gallery.”

To find out more about Dawna’s creative processes and to keep up to date about happenings at the Art Barn, you can visit her blog: artfulmusing.com.

Her work is also featured on dawnamagliacano.com.

Artists interested in submitting work for the upcoming themed shows at Mayday Brewery can contact Dawna at dkmagarts@gmail.com

And don’t forget to check out the second annual Folk’n Art festival at Mayday Brewery on July 26.