Meet a Mom: Marissa Tawney Thaler, Artist, Illustrator, Author and the “G” in the L-A-N-S-I-N-G Placemaking Sign!

Recent visit with Marissa Tawney Thaler in her local studio.

Earlier this fall we visited the brand new Hollywood-like L-A-N-S-I-N-G placemaking sign on the corner of Grand avenue and Saginaw street, across the street from Capitol Region Community Found Play Michigan playground installation.  And this is collaboration that includes Arts Council of Greater Lansing, Lansing Economic Development Corporation and the City of Lansing – along with seven local artists – seven FEMALE artists!  

Shortly after we visited this colorful creation that welcomes visitors from the west, we learned about Marissa Tawney Thaler – or as we nicknamed her around here as the “G” in the L-A-N-S-I-N-G sign!  

The opportunity for Marissa to participate in the L-A-N-S-I-N-G placemaking sign seemed the perfect opportunity to creatively share her love for the capital city.

Then an Instagram message and a phone call and a visit and now we are absolutely honored to have Marissa as our GLAMoms Meet a Mom this week!

Marissa and her family live in the Greater Lansing area. She has a sweet-spot for REO Town, the Moore’s Park Pool (and the restoration project) and the city that has welcomed her with open arms.   

Welcome to Greater Lansing Area Moms, Marissa… Thank you for joining us!

I’m Marissa Tawney Thaler. I grew up in Grand Rapids and went to Kendall College of Art and Design for Illustration and Art Education. We moved to Lansing when my son was 1, so my husband could start his doctorate at MSU. I taught elementary art, mostly in Waverly Schools, doing art stuff on the side (interning at Gallery 1212, curating at Keys to Creativity, creating work with 4th Culture Studio Collective, teaching at Reach Studio Art, and founding Briarwood Art Collective). About 6 years ago, I left education to be a full time artist. Since then, I’ve developed a drawing series, written and illustrated children’s books, and done a bunch of murals. My favorite thing is school author visits because it combines my two careers into one event!

People love a good story!  🙂 How did you and your husband meet?

We actually met in HS! He was the quiet boy in the school play and I was the loud-mouth girl who thought he was cute!

How old are your children?  Are you good at decoding your middle schooler?  (this is a joke here and I was told, “it is just weird when you try, mom…” HA 😛

I have a son in 11th grade – he’s quietly hilarious, a hard worker, and more introspective than I thought a kid could be.  He cares about things and people deeply, and is curious enough to do things like memorize LITERALLY every flag of every country in the world. 

My daughter is in 6th grade and hasn’t crossed the “mom and dad aren’t cool anymore” bridge. She’s the kind of kid that will push herself hard to PR in a race, and then hold a cup of water for ten minutes waiting for her friend to finish.

I think watching them feel confident enough to try things out – not just sports or extracurriculars, but style and sense of humor. I didn’t have a safe childhood, so it’s really fulfilling to give them something I know to be important.

What is a piece of advice for new moms you wish you would have known when you were a new mom?

Work on yourself! Go to therapy, learn to be present, do your best and be gracious with yourself when you mess up.

What is something you would share with a mom who has younger children now that yours are a bit older?

Your kids are incredibly intuitive. Start practicing honesty when they are young,  letting them know you can be a listener.

Honestly, I liked how much surface area the G had! More space to work with! When I created my design, I used a G-shaped picture plane. 

Please tell us more about this project!  (ie. timeline, what made you enter, inspiration, thoughts about this Hollywood-feel placemaking sign!  

I openly LOVE Lansing, so any Lansing-centric project appeals to me. The excitement around this project was awesome, and the fact that a couple of the artists were a little newer to the art scene made it really special. It’s probably the educator in me, but I have a soft spot for emerging artists. 

After we were notified and signed our contracts, we had a Zoom meeting to meet the other artists and hash out details. Work time was about 3 weeks, and our work space was hosted by Foster Community Center. 

GLAMoms visited recently on a very summer-like day!

Have you ever been in the Moores Park Pool?  What inspired you to incorporate this idea (and project) into “G”?

I am completely enamored with the Moores Park Pool! The kids and I used to go swimming there all the time, and I’ve been on pins and needles watching the back and forth for years about its restoration. I legit burst into tears of relief when they officially announced that the pool would be saved! Along with the pool, the stacks are so iconic and a huge visual piece of our collective identity.I wanted to include them in the piece.

Are there any things/details/hints for people planning to check out the  L-A-N-S-I-N-G sign?

I love that it is right across from the all-inclusive playground!  The colorfulness mirrors itself, and I love the pride we as Lansing people can have in these special little things.

(learn more about the Capital Region Community Foundation Play Michigan project HERE)

Anything else you would like to share about this project? 

The other women (all of the chosen artists were women!) were amazing to work with. There is something to be said about the camaraderie in female energy.

What time are you up in the morning? 

Three days a week, I’m up at 5 to get a little me-time in at the gym. Otherwise it’s 6:30 to make sure everyone gets out the door on time.

Since you are a XC mom, what shoes do you wear to stay dry?

I’m still new to the sport, so luckily it’s been dry so far!

And how do you take your coffee? 🙂 

Black and scalding hot! In the morning, afternoon, and evening! Really, I’d take it intravenously.

What is your favorite color?

Hands down, green.

Last book you read or favorite podcast? 

I’ve been on a huge book binge this past year- currently reading “Firekeeper’s Daughter” and “Fox & I”, but I just finished “Untamed” by Glennon Doyle. I switch between fiction and non-fiction, audio and paper.

I’m also huge into Podcasts, and my current obsession is listening to court cases on Court TV.

If you watch television, what is your favorite show?

It’s a toss up between Law and Order SVU and Survivor. I’d love to be on Survivor, but Olivia Benson is my hero.

What children’s book did you enjoy reading when your kids were younger?

This might be indicative, but my daughter loved the book Everybody Poops – she had it memorized!

We are big time Library Bums! When the kids were little, we would even catch movies and special performers at the different branches. 

We love Hawk Island, especially taking the trail to get there. Turner Dodge House Christmas Tree Festival is an annual tradition, and anything REO Town related is our jam! 

What are you looking forward to this fall?

I’m a HUGE fan of Halloween! I love the costumes and the parties. My son is in the marching band, and the competitions are an absolute BLAST! I joke that it’s my favorite sport. All the kids (from every school) work so hard, and the maternal feels are off the charts!

Mind sharing a mom trick another mom will be happy to learn?  

My world changed when we started doing Sunday Night Family Meetings to plot out the week!

I live on instagram!  Feel free to shoot me a DM @marissatawneythaler

😊

Thanks for joining us, L-A-N-S-I-N-G sign-letter “G”, 😊 we have enjoyed the opportunity to get to know you a little better Marissa!  

We do hope you have a lovely holiday season and while we are not in a rush for the white-stuff locally, we are looking forward to seeing this wildly-creative collection of local talent surrounded by snow!

Want to head back to Instagram?  Click HERE.

Did you enjoy learning more about Marissa Tawney Thaler?  Learn about other Greater Lansing area Moms featured with us below!

⭐️ Meet a Mom: Bianca Ashby, Princesses by Bianca

⭐️ Meet a Mom: Paula Panagouleas Miller, Karmascore CEO and Founder

⭐️ Meet a Mom: Robyn Fralick, Michigan State Women’s Basketball

You will find many more at greaterlansingareamoms.com/blog/meet-a-mom/

Boji Tower, Downtown Lansing, photo from Over the Edge, 2023

Today’s GLAMoms Meet a Mom was brought to you by Boji Group. 

Boji Group specializes in Private-Public Partnerships, has offices in both Lansing and Birmingham and is headquartered in downtown Lansing.