Women who Love too Much Community Group
WHEN BEING IN LOVE, MEANS BEING IN PAIN... This group is to help women through the journey of realizing they can love themselves. To help realize that they are capable of having a happy, healthy, whole relationship and break the cycle of abuse and heartache from loving emotionally unavailable men.
I thought I should start with a basic outline of what this is all about! Its not especially about 'art' with a capital A but creativity and being free to express yourself in a safe and private way.
In a world gone awry, art can become a welcome release from your troubles and is a very important part of healing from trauma. Art is both fun and relaxing and a great stress reliever. Art can be utilized as a method not only to express your deepest thoughts and feelings, but as a tool to get to know yourself better and to discover your hidden talents. Create art for art’s sake. Art does not always have to be for public consumption, competition or for material gain. Art should definitely not be used as a way for others to analyze your psyche. If your art is very personal, it may be best to use discretion and share it only with trusted friends or family. Ask others you know for their personal perspectives on art, but do not let them discourage you from exploring new modes of personal expression. Make it your goal to try your hand at something new and different that you’ve never done before.
When determining what types of art that you would like to pursue, you may consider exploring the world of art by visiting your local community center or art gallery. Take a good look around your community to get a sense of where your interests may lie. Art takes many forms, such as sculptures in the park, flower gardens, rock formations, and paintings, drawings or photos hanging on the walls of Churches, libraries or local restaurants. Other valuable resources for various ideas are craft and fabric stores, bookstores, or art supply stores. Taking a walk in the woods or walking along the beach will stir your imagination and may bring out the collector in you. Shells, rocks, petrified wood and other assorted nature items are great resources for craft projects like mobiles or collages. The more you observe your environment, the more you will become attuned to the many art forms available to you. Even baking cakes or cookies can become an art form!
It is always helpful to take a class to learn a new skill and art is no exception. There are many opportunities for classes through art centers, community colleges, or even at craft stores, depending on the level of your interest and skill. If finances are a problem, then consider checking out art books or video tapes at the nearest library. There are innumerable experts who have written how-to books on many different art forms, such as jewelry, woodworking, quilting, computer graphics, etc. You can learn almost anything you want to know in self-help books. If you live in a large city, there are large Institutes of Art which are open to the public where you can tour exhibits by world-renowned artists. These displays change with the seasons and are full of amazing works of art that bring fresh ideas no matter how many times you visit.
Find a relaxed atmosphere such as a coffee shop or reading room and bring a spiral notebook or journal with you to jot down notes. Challenge yourself to write a short poem or song on something that is of value to you. Give yourself some personal time to reflect on your creative goals.
Contemplate such questions as:
What types of art do I like most? Least?
What methods of art would I like to learn?
What is my primary interest? Secondary?
What subjects would I like to concentrate on most? Least?
What points do I want to convey?
What is the best way to express a particular point?
What motivates me to create art the most? Least?
What are my future goals?
Write your own questions related to art and write down your answers in your notebook. Your questions and answers will change over time. Keeping an art journal is a good way to measure your progress. If you are proficient in a particular skill which you would like to share, you may consider teaching a class or volunteering with a non-profit agency which specializes in the healing arts. My challenge to you is to embrace your inner child by doing any creative activity which brings you joy and which helps you to focus on the present moment.
In a world gone awry, art can become a welcome release from your troubles and is a very important part of healing from trauma. Art is both fun and relaxing and a great stress reliever. Art can be utilized as a method not only to express your deepest thoughts and feelings, but as a tool to get to know yourself better and to discover your hidden talents. Create art for art’s sake. Art does not always have to be for public consumption, competition or for material gain. Art should definitely not be used as a way for others to analyze your psyche. If your art is very personal, it may be best to use discretion and share it only with trusted friends or family. Ask others you know for their personal perspectives on art, but do not let them discourage you from exploring new modes of personal expression. Make it your goal to try your hand at something new and different that you’ve never done before.
When determining what types of art that you would like to pursue, you may consider exploring the world of art by visiting your local community center or art gallery. Take a good look around your community to get a sense of where your interests may lie. Art takes many forms, such as sculptures in the park, flower gardens, rock formations, and paintings, drawings or photos hanging on the walls of Churches, libraries or local restaurants. Other valuable resources for various ideas are craft and fabric stores, bookstores, or art supply stores. Taking a walk in the woods or walking along the beach will stir your imagination and may bring out the collector in you. Shells, rocks, petrified wood and other assorted nature items are great resources for craft projects like mobiles or collages. The more you observe your environment, the more you will become attuned to the many art forms available to you. Even baking cakes or cookies can become an art form!
It is always helpful to take a class to learn a new skill and art is no exception. There are many opportunities for classes through art centers, community colleges, or even at craft stores, depending on the level of your interest and skill. If finances are a problem, then consider checking out art books or video tapes at the nearest library. There are innumerable experts who have written how-to books on many different art forms, such as jewelry, woodworking, quilting, computer graphics, etc. You can learn almost anything you want to know in self-help books. If you live in a large city, there are large Institutes of Art which are open to the public where you can tour exhibits by world-renowned artists. These displays change with the seasons and are full of amazing works of art that bring fresh ideas no matter how many times you visit.
Find a relaxed atmosphere such as a coffee shop or reading room and bring a spiral notebook or journal with you to jot down notes. Challenge yourself to write a short poem or song on something that is of value to you. Give yourself some personal time to reflect on your creative goals.
Contemplate such questions as:
What types of art do I like most? Least?
What methods of art would I like to learn?
What is my primary interest? Secondary?
What subjects would I like to concentrate on most? Least?
What points do I want to convey?
What is the best way to express a particular point?
What motivates me to create art the most? Least?
What are my future goals?
Write your own questions related to art and write down your answers in your notebook. Your questions and answers will change over time. Keeping an art journal is a good way to measure your progress. If you are proficient in a particular skill which you would like to share, you may consider teaching a class or volunteering with a non-profit agency which specializes in the healing arts. My challenge to you is to embrace your inner child by doing any creative activity which brings you joy and which helps you to focus on the present moment.
Thanks for the post. I have done Art therapy before and found it hugely beneficial to my mental health as well as fostering a sense of "sisterhood" with the other women in the group. It's has been a couple of years since I stopped, so really keen to get back to it on my own now. Thank you for the suggestions. I blog on Wordpress and I am thinking that might be a good avenue for me to display my work..Not sure if I would use the existing blog or create a new annonymous one, but that or a Facebook page are my ideas.
I like stylised photography as a medium...
Art IS therapy. I dothink the word ART is a bit off putting with its connotations of grandness and expectation!
x
love it. i love making collages. i love watercolors i just suck. the critic gets the best of me.. i like to be creative. i just make an amazing wwltm 200 page journal.....i give to incoming clients.. i'm super pleased with how it turned out. all kinds of quotes and writings and thought provoking pages. i used canva.
i do hope you keep the art thread going love!
Remember its not about creating a 'beautiful piece of art work to be admired' its about the process of creating and expressing yourself. Don't hold back, relax and go with it.
Without further ado, the activities…
Scribbling with Your Eyes Closed
According to Malchiodi, because everyone started scribbling as kids, this is a natural place to start with art therapy. Before you begin, she suggests relaxing for a few minutes, listening to soothing music or meditating. For this activity, you’ll need an 18 by 24 inch paper and chalk pastels (though if you ask me, whatever you have will work).
Tape your sheet of paper to the table (or wherever you’re working) so it won’t budge. Pick a chalk color that you can see. Place your chalk in the middle of the paper, close your eyes and start scribbling.
Scribble for about 30 seconds, and open your eyes. Take a close look at your picture, and find an image (“a particular shape, figure, object and so on”). Be sure to examine your picture from all sides. You can even hang it on the wall, and step back to get the whole perspective. After you find your image, color it in and add details to bring “that image into clearer focus.” Hang up your drawing, and think of a title.
Spontaneous Images Journal
“Making images on a regular basis opens up many possibilities for understanding and expressing oneself,” Malchiodi writes. In your spontaneous images journal, you not only paste or create images, but you also write down a title and a few phrases or sentences about your work. (And date each one.) You can do this daily or several times a week.
The more you do this, the more you’ll “begin to see similarities in a theme, colors or shape” and develop “your own unique way of working with materials and your own images and symbols.”
Self-Soothing Image Book
You can use images to “self-soothe and create positive sensations,” Malchiodi says in her book. For this exercise, you’ll need 10 or more sheets of 8 ½ x 11-inch paper, magazines, colored paper, collage materials, scissors and glue.
Start by thinking about pleasant sensory experiences, such as landscapes, sounds, scents, tastes, textures and anything else that makes you feel tranquil or happy; and write them down. Cut out images that match those experiences out of your magazines and other collage materials.
Then paste those images onto the paper. You can organize the images by composition or textures, the environment and other categories. Pull together all your papers, create a cover and figure out how you’d like to bind your book. (For instance, you can punch holes in the papers and put them in a binder.)
Afterward, write down your general thoughts and feelings. And specifically, think about how you felt while choosing the images. Ask yourself “Which sensory images did I favor over others? Why?” Continue adding to your book whenever you like.
More Self-Exploration
To dig even deeper with these activities, Malchiodi suggests asking yourself questions about your work and art.
Instead of thinking about what an image means, think about the feeling it communicates. She writes: “What are your initial impressions? Is the image happy, angry, sad, anxious and so on? Or does it have many different feelings expressed through color, line and form? How do you use color, line and form to express emotion?”
“If the image could talk to you, what would it say?” Look at your picture, and give each part its own voice. Malchiodi suggests speaking in first person. So if you have a tree in your collage, you’d say, “I am a tree and I feel …”
Pick a part of your image that’s interesting to you or that you don’t like. “Try making another drawing or painting of that section only, enlarging it and adding new details or images that come to mind.”
“Explore images with images.” Create another image that responds to your original. Interestingly, Malchiodi says that your images will have different meanings depending on the day. She suggests keeping an open mind and continuing to explore.
Would love to hear your feedback on how you got on with these.
xxx
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