Lorelei Esser with the artist statement from an exhibit of her work. It reads: I see my present work as a Display of the Sustainable Spirit. Creating form from energy that has been dormant, lost or fallen from an animal or tree, from the sea, washed up and breaking down, man-made materials left behind to rust, rot, or wear away, making its way, rock to grain, to the eternal. These things that we see as lifeless are in a constant state of change and gradual movement. I gather wood, stone, plastic, metal, glass, paper, rubber, peeled paint, any material that I can read into the story. I design by form and find, and I am amazed at what is revealed in the process, the energy has come together from the memory of what once was, a purpose, a sentimental journey, an attachment to us.

Lorelei Esser discusses her unconventional life, her art, and many fascinating adventures in other countries.

Diana Rivers in the home she built at OLHA

Divorced and alone in 1972, Diana Rivers paddled her way from New York to Arkansas with an unbridled fever that turned the local landscape upside down.