“Artists don’t get down to work until the pain of working is exceeded by the pain of not working.” – Stephen DeStaebler How true. I know that I’ve gotten to this point when I walk by my studio and stare longingly at my canvases and paint, but am afraid to walk in. When I promise myself that “tomorrow I’ll paint”...
Mask making appears in many different cultures and throughout the course of human history. As an art therapy technique, I have found mask making with clients to be an incredibly interesting and often illuminating process for both of us. Creating and then wearing a mask allows us to expose parts of ourselves that we are not usually willing to embrace...
Mural making has been a passion of mine for a long time. I have done murals myself, as well as facilitating group mural making. Group mural making provides the participants with unique insight into how they express themselves within a group setting and often brings about new revelations about each participant’s unique individual voice and how it relates to the...
Below are a few quotes that I find very inspirational and just wanted to share:) Art, in itself, is an attempt to bring order out of chaos. – Stephen Sondheim An artist is a dreamer consenting to dream of the actual world. – George Santayana Artists don’t make objects. Artists make mythologies. – Anish Kapoor Creativity is allowing yourself to...
I found a very interesting website by a woman named Mara McWilliams. She is a woman living with Bipolar Disorder who has found a unique connection to art and poetry making. Here is her artist’s statement: My work revolves around the concepts of hope, healing, and expressionism. I believe that by freely sharing emotion through color choices and brush strokes,...
Sometimes people ask me what kinds of art therapy groups and individual sessions I do with my patients. What are some of the materials used or themes explored? Here is a list of some of the art therapy groups that I have led in the past few months at the hospital… 1. Seashell Creatures 2. Sand Paint 3. Underwater Worlds...
Here are a few pictures from the last mural that we did at the hospital. It is displayed in the front area of the “Zone” – which is our therapeutic play space. I sketched out the hot air balloon design, and then the mural was painted by a 5 year old patient. While painting she learned to mix her own...