your
heART's story
bringing what is inside, out
your heart's story
bringing what is inside, out
In philosophy, POISIS is, “the activity in which a person brings something into being that did not exist before.” Poisis is etymologically derived from an ancient Greek term which means, ‘to make,’ and is often referred to as the ability to create order out of chaos.
We carry a multitude of stories within us – our own and our ancestors: life’s joyful celebrations as well as those sad and painful experiences; gratitude, blessings, and words left unspoken; ancestral burdens, and stories that keep us locked in limiting beliefs about ourselves and others.
Art is a bridge that connects your inner world – heart, soul, and spirit – with your outer world; a way to bear witness to your life in a visual and visceral way by “bringing something into being that did not exist before.”
When telling the story of your life, don’t let anyone else “hold the pen.” Tell your own story – they’re already within you, just waiting for the invitation and opportunity to be told.
Yet the life within us calls out for expression.
This is what creativity serves.
It endeavours to bring some of our hidden life to expression
in order that we might come to see who we are.
Following are some of the ways in which we might invite these stories into being:
Book Arts & Journaling
Telling your story within the pages of a book is a deeply satisfying way to express yourself, and when you create a book/journal from start to finish, you form a relationship with it from the very beginning. It will become your creative companion – a sacred vessel and visual container for your thoughts and feelings, words and images – a place to empty out and be filled again with all the experiences and stories that make up the ordinary and not-so-ordinary moments of your day.
As a way of knowing,
art doesn’t demand that you change your life any more than trying meditation demands that you shave your head and enter a monastery.
How much you welcome your images and the stories they bring into your life is up to you.
The stories are already within you,
waiting to be told.
~Pat B Allen
Nature-based Expressive Arts
Art and nature are intricately linked and have provided guidance and life lessons for thousands of years. Various art activities are used to bring openhearted attention to your surroundings; the senses are awakened and engaged to invite connections and a creative relationship with the natural world.
The goal of life is to make your heartbeat match the beat of the universe, to match your nature with Nature.
~ Joseph Campbell
Poetry
Poetry and poem-making introduces you to the transformative power of words as a means to express your truth…and there’s no memorization required! Using poetry as a healing art enables you to engage in deep conversations with your soul.
Poetry is a life-cherishing force.
For poems are not words, after all, but fires for the cold, ropes let down to the lost, something as necessary as great in the pockets of the hungry.
~ Mary Oliver
Story
Story was the way our ancestors learned how to make sense of the world around them. It has the power to teach us everything we need to know, change our hearts and minds, and inspire us to grow. Story-telling is core to healing, and the stories offered to us in written form provide an opening and a bridge that connects us to our own stories, and to each other. Story forms and transforms us.
Tell your story. Shout it. Write it.
Whisper it if you have to. But tell it.
Some won’t understand it. Some will outright reject it.
But many will thank you for it. And then the most
magical thing will happen. One by one, voices will
start whispering, “Me too.”
And your tribe will gather.
And you will never feel alone again.
~L.R. Knost
Visual Arts
Visual arts are sensory – a process of self-expression that speaks to us in colour, line, image and form. Whether using paint or pastels, sculpting with paper, clay or wire – there are endless creative possibilities that tap into a language without words, yet become a pathway to a deep well of creative wisdom.
The point of art is not simply to express ourselves,
but to create an external, concrete form
in which the soul of our lives
can be evoked and contained.
~ Clarissa Pinkola Estes
Writing
A writing component is an integral part of the creative process; an opportunity to express your thoughts and feelings through conversation – with yourself, your art, or others. It’s a way to give voice to your art, share your story and invite what is inside, out. Whether just a few words to highlight or title your art piece, or writing in flow while listening and dialoguing with your creation, surprising and powerful insights often result.
Flow writing creates a connection between your conscious, cognitive mind and your intuitive, unconscious mind. It provides a way to get in touch
with your emotions, tap into your imagination, and invite new ideas to emerge.
trust the process…
intuition
always knows
the way.
trust the process…
intuition always knows the way.
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