Making Art is therapeutic!
Perhaps you are seeing that too.
We'll start with a few "express your emotions" exercises that require no drawing. These are just an opportunity to push paint around and play! You're occupying your thoughts with all the mechanics of art-making, and that's good therapy.
This is what I call the BEST therapy. Being in nature with time to paint! If it's by the water, that's even better.
Therapy is definitely on my mind today, because we are all Pandemic Coping... so here are a couple of prompts for today's journaling self-expression.
If it feels good for you, make a list of all your stressors and complaints. Sometimes it’s just good to give voice to your grief. I know it's a lot, so if it feels like this will only bring you down, skip this step and instead move on to Pandemic Gratitude, where you journal a little about things you can find to be grateful for during this time. What has been good that you’ve done differently? Are there opportunities being offered by the extra time and quiet?
This photo is of the cloister at the monastery we lived in during our retreat in Venice. A cloister represents a peaceful, safe place to me.
Peace and safety is what I want for us all.
Here are two recent examples of some "feel better" art.
Tanya sent me the poinsettia below after last year's challenge, and she said: "Thanks so much for bringing more peace to my holidays"
The sweet cone flower on the right was Julie's painting, where she told me she just felt better doing it.
I'm so looking forward to learning what you have found in your own art-as-therapy time!
Here are those Oil Pastels I was having so much fun with!