Meet Nancy Dale Alterman | Artist and Community connector

We had the good fortune of connecting with Nancy Dale Alterman and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Nancy Dale, what led you to pursuing a creative path professionally?
I came to realize I had artist talent in a most interesting way. Growing up in Denver in an athletic family art was never on my radar. I was following my passions for tennis, skiing, golf, running, hiking. You name it, I did it. Also in my family was bipolar illness. Sadly we lost our sister, Judy, to her illness when she was 27 and I was 23. I, too, started realizing that things had shifted in the way I felt when I was 14 and was diagnosed with bipolar illness when I was 18. Living with bipolar illness had it’s extreme challenges. I was mostly able to fake it so my friends and family didn’t realize how uncomfortable I truly was being in social settings. My identity was all about my athletic endeavors which I excelled at. Fast forward through too many ups and downs, too many hospitalizations, too many drug combinations to write about at this time, 15 years ago I found myself in a year of deep depression that was not lifting. After seeing 3 psychiatrist and trying so many medications, it was recommended that ECT, Electric Convulsive Therapy, better known as electric shock might be something to try. Well, ECT was extremely successful and brought me to a Nancy that I hadn’t known since I was 13 years old. The added plus is that when my depression had lifted, I found that I had an artistic talent that I never had known was there! I now do photography, pen and ink drawings, and collage. I really enjoy combining all of them for some of my works. My artist name is NancyDale…Dale being my middle name.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I didn’t realize until I was 55 that the artist in me was waiting to come out. Since my art is much more of a hobby than a profession, I am now able to donate most all that I create. It brings me so much joy to be able to use my art to raise funds for the non profits that I am passionate about. I have happily donated to any and all organizations that ask for a silent auction item, sometimes donating 3 pieces at a time. I have also had 3 one woman shows for fundraising purposes. The first was at the SAME Cafe on Colfax. So All May Eat is a non profit restaurant with no prices on the menu. You pay what you want, and if you only have a dime you can get the same delicious lunch as someone who has paid $50 because they wanted to make a donation to the cafe. I keep my prices very affordable so that, ideally, everyone can afford something to take home!
The second show was at the Vintage Theater. I chose to donate 80% to NAMI, National Alliance on Mental Illness, and the rest back to the theater. I am very involved with the mental health community.
Currently I am having a holiday show at my home gallery. My boyfriend converted our unused formal dining room into my show room. 100% of the proceeds for this show are going to Education Through Music. ETM brings music to the classrooms of the underfunded Denver metro area grade schools. Seeing the joy of the children when they are singing or learning how to play an instrument is so heartwarming.
To date I have raised over $5,000 for these 3 organizations with, hopefully, more to come!

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Wow, where do I begin! With my love of art there are so many wonderful galleries to visit. To name a few, a gem is the Red Line Gallery. Red Line has several artists in residence and they are mentored by established artist to improve their craft and to introduce them to ways to get their art out to the community. There you can watch the artist work on their current projects. Other galleries would include the Colorado Photographic Arts Center or the Freyer-Newman Center at the Denver Botanic Gardens. While at the gardens, especially in the summer, it is wonderful to eat at the outdoor cafe. The next day a trip to Golden would be fabulous. There you can stroll along the walking path, visit the Golden History museum (did you know that Jolly Rancher candy was started in Golden?!) and then have lunch on Washington street at D’deli. The list of crazy combinations of ingredients for a sandwich will astound you!
If your friends happen to be visiting in the late summer, you have to take them to Anderson Farms in Erie. There you will see more sunflowers then you can ever imagine….17 acres full. You can get a bucket and clippers and chose your own variety of flowers to take home. It is such a delight and the photo ops are amazing! For dinner that night when you get back to Denver you can have dinner at Fire located in the Art Hotel. The outdoor patio is fabulous!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I, honestly, have too many people to thank for where I am today. It was a group effort with my entire family including my brothers, cousins, and friends to help me though all my years of depression and also during those time of extreme mania. I am so very grateful for all of them who continue to support me still.

Since discovering the artist in me, I have two artists to thank. One being Darrell Anderson. Darrell is an internationally recognized artist born and raised in Denver as am I. We met just as I was coming into my own as a creative and he has helped guide me from the beginning. He encourages me to express myself in as many mediums and styles that flow through me. The other artist is Topher Straus. Topher is really making a name for himself around the country with his beautiful large images of national parks, ski towns, and other amazing places around the country. Topher has helped me to recognize how many of my works tell my own story of overcoming depression even when I don’t intentionally create the piece with that in mind. Thank you to Darrell and Topher!

Instagram: Yofiegal

Other: Since I am truly not a professional artist, I don’t have all the traditional social media outlets. If you would like to contact me for a silent auction donation you can reach me at NancyDaleDesigns@gmail.com.