At first glance, Kallie's journey into the Houston art scene may seem unexpected. Yet, like countless other influential musicians, poets, orators, artists and reformers, she found her creative voice and her gifts of music, writing, speaking and community building in the sacred, tucked away spaces of society.

 

From 2014-2019, Kallie led RECESS Women, a faith-based community for women of all ages and backgrounds. "It's no secret," Kallie says, "that my love for people and my advocacy for the power of art emerges from my spiritual roots." ​During that time, Kallie worked on what would become her first book - RECESS: Seek, Encounter, Know - to aid people in their discovery of God's love. "What started as a 12-peron grassroots movement spread like a wildfire to become a safe, artistic, life-giving collective for people to come together and seek God." In 2019, Kallie published the RECESS Book, allowing for groups all around the world to go through their own "RECESS journeys." Kallie led her final RECESS gathering in December 2019... just a few months before a global pandemic. 

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Kallie took 2020 as a sort of sabbatical year to reassess her life, goals and passions. "As I looked at the state of the world around me, I couldn't shake this growing conviction that in times of chaos, isolation and division, ART would be the bridge, rebuilding souls and cities. I knew it was time for me to step out in a new way, explore a new side of me, learn a new language, if you will." ​A year later, she launched RECESSMVMT, a charitable, art-based nonprofit where she spearheaded the "ART REBUILDS" campaign for three years. Working alongside 100+ local artists, Kallie created and produced everything from music to film to fashion to performance art to installations and more, all with the mission of inspiring unity and hope. "The power and relatability of this project was unforgettable. We truly experienced art as a bridge - it was somehow able to bring together the most unlikely of people and transform them into family." 

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By 2023, these experiences had emboldened Kallie to take on her most daring creative endeavor yet - NOT ANOTHER CONSPIRACY - an original one-hour, 8-act show which she wrote, directed and produced. NAC featured 90+ artists of all disciplines and backgrounds. It played (and sold out twice!) for two nights in POST Houston's iconic X-Atrium. Like most of her body of work, NAC was a stunning procession of imagination and beauty that challenged the narrative of our modern apocalypse. "At base level, this project was a deeply introspective reflection on the ruins of my life that I'm still rebuilding after 2020. But I also knew the message was bigger than me, and the scale of the production had to do it justice. I'm just so grateful for the show's impact - it really did seem like a first breath after a coma. We are not without hope. We are the artists, and we will rebuild."

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Kallie continues to work and create in Houston, collaborating with everyone from local market makers to heads of collegiate arts departments to art curators and more. She's been married for 10+ years to her high school sweetheart Eric, who she met singing. When asked recently "what's next in your creative arsenal," she replied, "in some ways, I feel the work we did with NAC is just beginning... I've got some ideas up my sleeve for where we're heading next. Everyone's already heard me say that Montrose Matters."​​