Prepare. Intent. Create. Transform. 2023 Creative Offering

creativity in motion

As many of my creative friends & followers know, in 2008 I started an annual end-of-the-year creative practice where I would create an altered book or art journal identifying intentions I wanted to focus on, invite in, and give to others during the new year ahead.

Last year, I launched an updated ebook and virtual workshop & group opportunity to inspire and discover the hopes and aspirations of intention through this creative practice. It was fun and inspiring to gather together in this special way to artfully work on this process together. It is hard to believe another year and another book has transformed. It is that time of year I begin to do a final look at my year through the lens of my intentions.

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Shortly, though it will be time for this artful process to begin anew – Preparing, intending, creating, and transforming a fresh book…

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Acknowledgments

Dear 6 Degrees of Creativity community ❤

The Art Therapist's Guide to Social Media

As 2017 comes to a close, thanks to everyone who was part of making The Art Therapist’s Guide to Social Media lots of fun to launch this year! Gratitude to everyone who helped, contributed to, and supported this labor of love. From Routledge, contributors, readers, friends, family to colleagues from the art therapy community and more- Thank you!   Looking forward to some book inspired happenings in 2018!

Author’s Acknowledgments (pp. xxii-xxiii):

First and foremost, I owe a tremendous amount of gratitude to the 13 teachers and mentors that have guided and supported my development – personally and professionally. This book is a labor of love, truly manifested by 20 years of connection, community, and creativity I have experienced within the art therapy field related to technology. This book could not have become a reality without the contributions and inspirations of so many on and offline. A special thank you…

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Creative Action Link Round Up: Self-Care, Responsibility, Community

creativity in motion

 Social media is a powerful tool for self expression and engagement of all kinds…giving a voice for many and often a way to cast attention, influence, and respond to causes, values, and efforts we hold dear or reject.

Below are some links I have been reading, saving, and sharing from and on social media recently. Most are rooted in self-care, individual influence and responsibility, and creative community action through the arts. Many offer ways we can effectively activate resources, ideas, and our gifts both on and offline with others (and ourselves) as artists, creatives, mental health professionals, helpers, and human beings.

Self-Care:

• How to Take Care of Yourself During Dark Times– tiny buddha
• How to Take Care of Others Without Burning Out– Stanford Medicine
• five ways to be online, while the world wakes up to itself- Sas Petherick Coaching
• Life is Tough. Here are Six Ways to Deal…

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Creativity & The Arts in Healing

I will be offering a version of this 6 Degrees of Creativity online workshop from 2014 at this Creativity & the Arts in Healing conference- part of the 2017 Expressive Therapies Summit Los Angeles:

creativity in motion

The UCLArts & Healing Conference in partnership with the Expressive Therapies Summit presents Creativity & The Arts in Healing to be offered this spring March 30 through April 2, 2017 in Los Angeles, California at the Hilton Los Angeles Airport. This 4 day conference is an opportunity to learn arts-based tools for facilitating communication, building connection, promoting positive emotions, fostering engagement, reducing stress, and managing the impact of trauma.  Offerings include 125+ workshops delivered by leading national experts in art, dance, drama, drumming, music, and writing integrated with mental health practices. Select any one or combination of days. Over 30 continuing education credits are available.

Specialty tracks include:

• Mindfulness & Wellbeing
• Children & Adolescents
• Community Building & Social Justice
• Expressive Writing & Journaling
• Play Therapy
• Special Populations

Creative expression invites self-reflection and dialogue that can lead to meaningful self-discovery, connection with others, and personal empowerment. Studies have shown that the…

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Creative Deeding in Action

creativity in motion

This past month has seen much creative deeding!  The Hope-filled Postcard Art Exchange that Nancy Lautenbach and I organized went super well with almost 100 participants swapping art across the US, Canada, Europe, Australia, and Asia— You can check out some of the postcard art submitted on the 6 Degrees of Creativity Facebook page and on Instagram — So much hopeful energy and positive vibes shared through the handcrafted images made specifically for this collaborative effort! These blog posts from art therapists who participated in the exchange described more about their process: Carolyn Mehlomakulu’s  The Power of Hope-filled Art  and Sally Swain’s Clouds of Hope.  Thank you to everyone who contributed to this project!

I also recently received word that undergraduate art therapy students at Millikin University implemented their own creative deed project for their Materials and Methods class, inspired by last year’s 365 project.  It was awesome…

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Creative Deed Project: “Art-filled Hope” Postcard Art Exchange

“When all else seems lost and steeped in hopelessness, the magic of creativity can still keep you going.” – Jyoti Arora

Earlier this summer at the national art therapy conference in Baltimore, inspiration for a new creative collaboration was sparked during a 6 Degrees of Creativity meet-up, as well as a focus group I led on social media’s impact on creative motivation. These initial dialogues resulted in art therapist Nancy Lautenbach and me to brainstorm ideas for a new creative collaboration. In the spirit of the Creative Deed Project launched by 6 Degrees of Creativity in 2014 and Nancy’s viewing of The Big Hope Show at the American Visionary Art Museum while we were in Baltimore, we are excited to announce a postcard art exchange called “Art-filled Hope”.

The project: Create 3 handmade postcards with original art that will be sent through the postal mail to three different individuals also participating in the exchange. You will also receive three postcards/art in return from fellow participants!  Participants are responsible for the shipping of their postcard art, which may include international postage, depending on the recipient’s mailing address. Postcard art should be mailed out by October 1, 2016.

Theme: Fill your postcards with hope inspired art to exchange with art therapists and other creatives around the world! We can always use a little hope in our lives, to release into the world and to others in the spirit of affirmation, courage, and possibility.

How to sign up: Please send an email to 6degreesofcreativity@arttherapyalliance.org with your full name and mailing address. By signing up for this exchange, you agree to meet the project’s mailing deadline and to follow through with sending your postcard art to your assigned destinations. Please do not sign up for this creative collaboration if you are unable to commit to these expectations. Deadline to sign up is September 8. Participants will receive the mailing addresses they are sending to shortly after this deadline via email.

Participants involved in this exchange are also encouraged to email an image of their art, so it can be shared with the 6 Degrees of Creativity community on Facebook— filling social media with our hopeful messages and art for others to experience!

Some recent hope-filled resources to help inspire and inform your art making and ideas about this theme include:

• This PDF of exhibition quotes from The Big Hope Show;

• 20 creative quotes on courage, hope, and possibility;

• How hope can help you heal CNN news article: The physiological benefits of hope on our well-being, including how community and the people who surround us can influence and spread its impact;

• 5 ways hope improves your success Daily Fulfillment article featuring research and advantages that having a hope inspired mindset can have on well-being and future

We look forward to what the theme from this exchange inspires, the connection it creates, and as an opportunity to share and spread the power of hope through art!

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Travel Update: Random Acts of Art Adventure Arrives Home!

Joy! The Random Acts of Art Adventure arrived back this month- wow! Thousands and thousands of miles logged around the world and many, many creative hands have contributed to this project since 2013- it been quite overwhelming to still take it’s artful presence all in- now here back in my hands- so grateful for everyone who was part of its long, inspiring journey…. Below are pics from its last few creative stops in Texas, North Carolina, and back here to Ohio:

Bethany in Texas:

Carolyn in Texas— who also wrote this great post about her experience on her blog Creativity in Therapy:

Molly in North Carolina:

Misty in Ohio:

My plan is to photograph the beautiful creative passports that traveled with the pouch and put a video together of its creative adventure and celebrate all the amazing participants who helped make this project happen throughout its 61 stop travel route.

Back @ 6 Degrees of Creativity Headquarters!

This journey of creative goodness was truly a group effort and could not have happened without everyone’s contributions, commitment, and participation.  Thank you!

More to come….  🙂

Create Fest: The 1st Annual Virtual Creativity Festival for Mental Health Professionals

creativity in motion

Check this out! Create Fest — The 1st Annual Virtual Creativity Festival for Mental Health Professionals!

I am soooo excited to be a part of this offering!

Lisa Michell and Courtney Armstrong have brought together 12 influential therapists, and asked each to offer inspired approaches that will help you partner with your creativity to do your best work and elicit deep transformation within your clients (and yourself).

Discover new, creative ideas and earn 12 CEU’s from the comfort of your own home or office and… each speaker will lead an inspiring activity you can do during the festival to experience these transformational strategies yourself!

I am speaking about topics related to self-care, trauma focused work, and creativity’s role in supporting mental health professionals. It was a pleasure to speak with Lisa about these topics–  It’s an honor to be included in the debut of this event with such an inspiring line…

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Cultivating Creativity, Connection & Community | TEDx Ursuline College

creativity in motion

I’m super excited to share my TEDx Ursuline College talk that went live last week!

It was an amazing opportunity to share my love of social media, creativity, and community building…. It was a great experience to talk about the possibilities social networking offers to connect all these passions together!

I’ve been able to creatively connect with soooo many through social networking– the art-based collaborations & gathering together that can happen online is always so inspiring!

TEDx Rehearsal

TEDx Ursuline College

TEDx Ursuline College

How do you use social media to cultivate creativity, connection, and community?

Check out all the TEDx Ursuline College talkshere.

Related Posts:

Social Media and Creative Motivation

Random Acts of Art Adventure Travel Posts

Creative Motivation Quotes

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Random Acts of Art Adventure December 2015 Travel Update

The Random Acts of Art Adventure has finished 5 more of its final stops here in the US over the last couple of months!  Yes! The participants of this adventure’s tail end have patiently waited (with much excitement!) as this project has traveled around the globe for over 3 years- 🙂

Check out these captures (thank you!) as sent to me by Suzie, Lisa, Laura, Joni & Dawn:

 

The pouch o’ creative goodness visits with Suzie in Sacramento on its tour throughout California!

Greetings from San Jose!

The pouch arrives to Lisa! With the materials that were gifted to her, Lisa created small pieces of art to randomly leave for others to find!

The Random Acts of Art Adventure’s stash received by Laura on its last California stop in Sunnyvale

Stop #55 includes a creative visit to Grand Junction, Colorado with Joni!

Dawn in Midwest City, Oklahoma welcomes the adventure to her creative space!

As a re-cap on what this awesome canvas pouch has experienced and the creative goodness it and all the participants have spread, so far there’s been #56 destinations over thousands and thousands of miles. This project started in 2012 @ 6 Degrees of Creativity Headquarters in the US and another 30+ US stops, then traveled to Canada, the UK, Italy, Singapore, India, Australia, New Zealand, and came back to the US this year for another 15 stops!

Over this time, participants have filled up the pouch over and over again with different art materials and artsy stuff for the next person on the travel route to receive and create art with for others as a gift of kindness, gratitude, and generosity.  Watching this creative chain and connection has been amazing!

If you are interested in learning more, you can check out all the travel updates from this amazing journey here.

Only 5 more stops left- 🙂  Stay tuned…..