Moving into the Imaginal Space

With the wrap-up of my Expressive Arts Session Series with the 55+ group at the Kerby Centre, I have come to a broader realisation that an Expressive Arts Therapist or Facilitator goes beyond being a Change Agent, to become an Agent of Hope in the lives of others.

We move from the world of everyday life, into the imaginal and creative space. Through the transition from one art form to another, - harvesting from what is created - the reflections gathered in the process can be taken back out into the world with new vision and insight.

Expressive Arts work is "resource oriented, and solution focused". What the participant creates, explores, and discovers, becomes their means to expand, change, and move forward in positive ways. The Expressive Arts Facilitator plants the seeds of growth by guided art making inquiry, and the invitation to be open to imagination.

Friendship means Laughter tile. The Importance of Friendship in our lives. After I directed inquiry based art making, followed by sharing and discussion, I invited everyone to create paper tile artworks about what friendship means to them. We placed these tiles on the wall to form our Community Art Friendship Mosaic. Soft instrumental music played in the background to help achieve personal focus, inspiring creativity.