The first one is for adults on Saturday, January 16,from 10am -3pm. I'm co-leading with Rebecca Wilkinson, ATR-BC, in Washington, DC, at Smith Farm Center for Healing and the Arts and we'll be focusing on using Altered Books to explore creativity and identify strengths. See sidebar or smithfarm.org for details-sign up quick though, if you'd like to come because it's filling up. I'm so looking forward t
o it as we'll be using our altered books to record and capture positive emotions as we identify our strengths. This work is very inspirational..
The other event is a series of four Saturday morning workshops for teens ages 12 to 16 who have experienced adoption. The focus will be on creating books about “our story –where we have been and where we are going, and who we have become on the way." We all could benefit from making a book like this, I think! I'm co-leading with Patty Pearson, MA who is the UMFS Adoptive Parent Liaison. If you are interested in this workshop and live near Alexandria, VA contact Patty at pattylpearson at yahoo dot com. I'm really excited about this opportunity because in '07 I wrote an article on using altered books in art therapy with adolescents which was published in the Journal of the American Art Therapy Association. The article was inspired by the altered books young people in foster care made during art therapy with me at the Adolescent and Family Growth Center in Springfield, Virginia. I worked there for seven years, and really miss the amazing people there. So I'm really grateful for Patty's interest in art therapy with teens who are adopted to help to me return to this work.
Altering books provides a symbolically rich means of exploring reflection and transformation, especially when we make art intentionally for healing and to engage in growth and change. Jenny Navarro, ATR-BC presented about their use in art therapy supervision at the recent American Art Therapy Association conference in Dallas She titled it Altered Art/Altered Perspectives, which I thought was very apt title. Thanks, Jenny! You reminded me there are lots of ideas and new directions to come using this art form.
I'm anticipating some positively altered perspectives in 2010!
Enjoy the New Year!
-Gioia
Thanks Gioia, for visiting my site and for your comments. I love what you have here and want to come back and study it more.
ReplyDeleteWow, it is amazing how much the world of art therapy has changed since back when I was practicing ( I was in the same class as Lani at NYU!) . I am not practicing now but I love seeing what art therapists are doing these days with all the wonders that the internet provide.