TRS The Artist

Welcome To My Artistic Playground

TRS The Artist is a unique online exhibition that embodies Toni Short's transformative journey toward healing, self-discovery and expression through the vessel of art. Her website showcases her intimate collections of artworks, writing, film, stage and voice related projects as well as a timeline that chronicles her artistic and healing evolution.

Welcome to my online exhibition which embodies my transformative journey toward healing, self-discovery and expression through the vessel of art.

This sacred space showcases my intimate collections of those creative endeavors and experiences.

You will find stories, books, poems, songs, movie scripts, paintings, photos, videos and more. Some finished and some work in progress - a lot like me.

How did TRS The Artist begin?

Much of my earlier career in event production, via Shortlist Agency, was spent creatively supporting and promoting others. The path to becoming a working artist myself appeared later in life, at 42 to be exact. It all began over the summer of 2018, moreso as a function to heal myself from an emotional breakdown, where immersing myself into creative exploration and alternative healing modalities quickly blossomed into a deep passion, and need to express myself through an ongoing daily artistic practice, that supported my mental health andbut answered a calling to collaborate and share my perspective on life, through art, with the world.

Tell us more about your creative explorations in order to heal?

Lying on my apartment floor, riddled in shame and completely broken inside and out (from getting caught in a narcissistic romance scam that drained me of my life force, joy and money) I heard a voice. It told me to get up, put three pieces of paper on my apartment wall and create a calendar for the next three months, splitting each day into morning, noon and night. Now what, I had said. Breadcrumbs. Listen and follow the breadcrumbs, the voice replied.

Looking back, what unfolded was a series of conversations with this inner voice I had discovered, a vast array of coincidences or synchronicities (depending on your school of thought) and a deep sense of relief that I had been given an invitation to pour my energy into something, and that something happened to be me. Here’s a few examples of what transpired as the breadcrumbs began to appear.

Painting is something I had never tried but was always curious about. One morning a barely used watercolor set appeared in my apartment lobby. So began my love affair with painting and this practice became my first addition to the daily sunset time slot in my calendar. Eventually expanding my repertoire into other mediums, through committing to paint every day for over two years, my collection now boasts over 500 paintings. Some are “terrible” (trust me) and some are “breathtaking” but nonetheless all are loved deeply as each one is representative of a time and place in my healing journey.

One morning’s bike ride along New York’s Hudson River brought me face to face with people flying through the air tethered to a trapeze. The voice confirmed my idea. Tuesday and Thursday mornings became my time to fly.

Not a day went past that someone didn’t suggest writing to help me heal. Having toyed with journal writing before I decided to investigate other ways to dig in and get my story out of me. A few online searches later, Course Horse led me to an eight week memoir writing workshop. Signing up immediately broke the seal and writing became a daily practice too, right after morning bike rides. Poems began to bleed out of me and the experience of writing about how I felt and my innermost thoughts was beyond cathartic. It’s also sweet to look back at those musings and how far I have come to shift myself into a deeper state of happiness by actively letting out all that pain that was stuck inside my mind, body and soul through the practice of writing.

What is your daily art practice now?

Typically each day starts with some form of meditation or contemplation. That might be a walk in nature, sitting by the water to watch the sunrise or simply stillness or quiet time with myself. This prepares my mind, body and soul for the day,. Oopens space for dialogue with my higher self, and attunes me to a sense of calm or joyous state that I can then take with me through the rest of the day.

Then I write. Call it Morning Pages (check out The Artist Way by Julia Cameron if you are curious) or freehand writing by my subconscious. For me, the structure is a self contained story, in third person, over three pages. Anchored around something that feels alive for me at that moment. They are brief yet deeply intimate windows into my psyche and a great tool for processing thoughts and feelings. I coined this writing collection She couldn’t help but think… and will be releasing them as a series of online stories in 2024.

Then throughout my “working” day I am never far from some sort of immersion in or reflection of a creative project which could be steps towards producing an event or film for myself, curating a presentation deck for a client, or collaborating with a client on a project of theirs.

Why was creating an online home for TRS The Artist so important to you?

Carl Jung, radical and inspirational psychologist and thinker, was among the first to use art therapy as a way to express oneself and looked at the works of art one created as a means to spiritual growth. In the same vein as Jung, I personally believe we can heal the world through the arts. While that is a big statement, my own journey and those I have witnessed since showed me first hand the power of creative expression and artistic exploration.

Creating an online exhibition to showcase the artistic works that came to life during my healing journey felt like a natural step, a calling even. I recognized that as an artist, I had a responsibility to share my artistic and healing evolution,. -Aas individually and collectively, the pieces express my growth and expansion -, their evidence of the breadcrumbs that lead me back to a happier version of myself. If one person on the planet can find a breadcrumb amongst my body of work then that in itself is a gift and my “work” is done.

Tell us about upcoming TRS The Artist projects?

I’m super excited to have two new films out there in the world, both embarking on their film festival runs.

Meeting Mr. Oscar, is my directorial debut and first narrative project for my new agency, We Go High Productions. A story very close to my heart about Audrey, a middle aged woman, who finds the courage to see her life differently after meeting an eccentric stranger. Uncalled Guest is a psychological thriller, where I play Laura, who immerses herself into the world of calculated darkness. A woman who wants what she wants and will kill to get it. Send me a message through the water is my first poetry book set to release in 2024. A poetic expression of one’s journey to find comfort with the absence of love. Watch out for this special coffee table book with beautiful visuals and heartfelt words to delight the soul.

Becoming Myself is an art collection that captures my body’s experience with a narcissist. Five life size body imprints set to healing music and accompanied by my story.

And as always, there’s more collaboration, collaboration, collaboration in the works! Hit me up if you have an idea or a creative project that we can collaborate on… museme@tonishort.com.

Visit TRStheartist.com