WHAT IS CREATIVE LIBERTIES AND HOW DID IT GET STARTED?
“ARTISTS HELPING ARTISTS! A business dedicated to helping artists of all levels with a plethora of needs including thing like studio space, community, organizing work, selling work and entering shows. Welcome to Creative Liberties, we want to hear your story!”
Our Staff
ELIZABETH GOODWILL
Elizabeth has an MFA from New Mexico State University and a BFA from The Ohio State University. She was raised in a creative household. She considers herself to be a craftsperson, an artist and a teacher, in no specific order. Her work is playful and thoughtful, bright and soft, natural and bound. She is a mixed media sculptor and fiber artist. Her work has been exhibited around the country and internationally since 1999 and pieces are part of private collections around the world. She was the Education Director at Art Center Sarasota from 2012-2021. She also has been teaching art to students of various ages for over 25 years. Currently she is teaching classes at The Ringling Museum and Sarasota Libraries.
BARBARA GERDEMAN
Barbara studied Advertising Design at the Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale. After graduation she worked in the field for 1-1/2 years before leaving to start a successful freelance career that eventually grew into a mural and decorative painting business. She has also worked for Art Center Sarasota as their Youth Education Coordinator where she organized and taught Summer Art Camp, Saturday youth programs and the Slice of Art field trip outreach program. She is thrilled to this latest artistic journey with her BFF and fellow artist, Elizabeth Goodwill.
Gary LaParl
ASHLEY HARTER
Ashley is our social media guru - she makes sure that we have a strong social media presence and that our artists are getting the attention they deserve. She is an emerging photographer and owner of Little Harts Learning Center her home preschool business.
Our History
Elizabeth Goodwill and Barbara Gerdeman met as Summer Art Camp teachers at Art Center Sarasota. Both share a love for teaching and for working with children. Elizabeth went on to become the Education Director at ACS. Barbara took a hiatus from the Art Center to focus on her painting business and other entrepreneurial endeavors. A few years later, Elizabeth was in search of a Camp Coordinator and asked Barbara if she would be interested. As they worked together planning youth programming, they found that they had a lot in common and became besties. Being creative people they both have LOTS of ideas - way too many ideas and not enough time to make them all happen! Many of these ideas have been the topics of discussion over “business meetings” at local restaurants. In 2018 at one of these meetings the idea of Creative Liberties was born. Over the years to follow, Creative Liberties morphed and evolved into a multitude of forms. Then the brightest light bulb went on. They both have a passion for helping others and realized that would be the perfect direction for Creative Liberties.