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Expressive Arts Workshop
May 22, 2023 @ 11:00 am - 1:30 pm
The Expressive Arts Gatherings provide a safe and nurturing environment for friends to journal and create simple art activities surrounded by the theme of connecting to self and Spirit. Each month a theme such as love, peace, anger, divorce, bereavement, new beginnings, etc. is introduced and followed by visual art, writing, movement, music, and meditation for a multi-modal approach to knowing ourselves and Spirit more intimately. Through the use of expressive arts we begin to remind ourselves that we are already whole and loved beyond our imaginings. No art or writing experience is needed. We focus on the process rather than the product.
There are many times over the course of our lives when we feel the need to wear a personality mask in order to hide our true feelings and/or cope with different challenging situations. This can be a way to keep ourselves safe and may protect us from hurt due to societal pressures, rejection, and abusers. Eventually over time, hiding our authentic selves can cause undue stress, anxiety, and depression. This session will explore the different masks we wear or have worn throughout our lives as well as asking ourselves the essential question of “who is my true authentic self?”
Using low-skill immersive art, writing, and visualization activities, we will explore who we really are and how we can safely express ourselves with healthy boundaries, communication, and self-compassion.
Lisa Cooper
Lisa was a long time student of The Muse before receiving her MFA in Creative Writing and Adult Education with a concentration in memoir from Seton Hill University. Trained and certified as a grief and recovery facilitator in the state of Virginia, she developed The Muse’s first Writing through Grief and Trauma. Before teaching at The Muse she worked as an adjunct at The College of William and Mary and at Paul D. Camp Community College in the English departments. Her personal writing currently centers on slice-of-life memoir pieces and poetry about her experiences as an EMT and life as a mother of three boys. She is currently pursuing a PHd in Expressive Arts Therapy.