Vonda Drees is a visual artist whose love for the questions in life fuels her creative practice. She added a studio partner in November 2024, a curious and playful black lab named Ren. When not in the studio, the two are likely out frolicking in the natural beauty of the Driftless Region in Wisconsin.

Vonda and her husband Jim served as directors of the Grünewald Guild, an art and faith retreat center in Washington State, from 2016-2020. Vonda was the artist-in-residence for the 2017 Women of the ELCA Triennial Gathering and created the art for Augsburg Fortress’s 2023 Calendar of Word and Season. She uses her artistic gifts and passion to work on commissions, deliver art programs, and develop immersions and resources. Vonda hosts online creative journaling communities and facilitates in-person workshops.

Self taught as an artist, Vonda draws inspiration from the natural world and sacred geometry. She loves the art of Georgia O’Keeffe, Hilma af Klint, and Emily Carr. Theologians Barbara Holmes and Teilhard de Chardin, Mystics Howard Thurman and Robin Wall Kimmerer, Poets Cole Arthur Riley and Mary Oliver are among the creatives whose work inspires her.