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EMERGING
Unveiling the Magic in Everyday Life
EMERGING
EXPRESSIVE ARTS THERAPY
Who its for!!!
You've been trying so hard and still feel stuck
We listen to the whole of you. Body, imagination, emotion, intuition, psyche, mind, and voice.
1:1 Expressive Arts Therapy Online
with Karen Queller
Let life reveal itself through your creative expression.
Bring a challenge, desire, project or transition. No artistic training needed
Do you understand me?
Are you a creative, deep-feeler with a hunger to take up more space in your life? for more life??
You feel a lot. you think a lot. you want a lot. Theres a lot inside you that wants to come outside of you. to be expressed.
Who its for!!!???
Whether you're stuck in your life or a creative project, there is something inside you that wants to come out, and it needs more space to move.
You feel stuck because your trying to think your way through every challenge, and you're out here trying to make it all happen on your own.
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You're perfectionism keeps you from doing
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You've lost touch with what lights you up
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Nothing ever feels like enough.
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Your body feels numb
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Your joy feels far away.
Your life might feel ....fine... good enough..., but if you ever let yourself get quiet, you hear a whisper that says 'I miss feeling like me'. You stay busy, so you don't have to feel the grief, fear, and unknown.
You forgot how to trust and flow WITH life.
You miss yourself, and aren't sure how to feel more YOU
You wonder
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When did just being yourself become such hard work?
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When did life become so serious??
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Where did all the joy and magic and play go?
At some point, your mind probably started to take over. expectations, judgements, external validation.... You stopped following the fun and started following the shoulds.
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I should be responsible.
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I should have everything figured out so there is zero room for mistakes.
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I should know what i want.
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I should have already had the perfect life by now.
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I should be a little more together like my neighbor.
Those shoulds will drive you crazy.
You cooould keep pushing... Forcing your way forward is an option, but it's not fun, It's exhausting. It's boring. It's also not nourishing, or sustainable and it sucks the aliveness out of life. This way of living leaves the soul feeling dry, and the soul is happy when it's wet.
What if there is another way?
A different way
What if there is an easier, more enjoyable way...What if you could just put all you've been carrying down for a little while and let it all just be enough? What if we can open one tiny window inside you and let in some fresh air?
What if you didn't have to do so much heavy lifting and instead let life guide you and speak to you through the language of colors, sounds, textures, images, movements, sensations, stories, poetry, symbols, ritual and creative inspiration....?
Sounds way better, right?!
STOP FORCING.
START LISTENING
Learn to Become Open and Available to Life
Life is our aliveness.
Life includes both the visible and the unseen. the known and the unknown.
Life is made up of our environments, the people around us, opportunities, our lived experience- our body, emotions, relationships, creativity, longings, patterns, and surprises that come that tickle us or make us scrunch our noses.
There is information everywhere and our work is about learning how to notice, trust, and respond to all of these layers of input, so that we can feel more connected to ourselves and to life. We are not alone. We are in relationship with life itself.
What if your life was trying to guide you. Do you think you'd be able to recognize it?? Would you answer the door if it came knocking, calling you outside to play?
Life is speaking to us every moment of every day.
It might come as a thunderous voice with a booming AHAAA moment!!! But often it comes in quiet ways.
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The project you can't stop thinking about.
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The conversation that lingers with you for days
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the walk you suddenly feel drawn to take
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the tears that arrive for no obvious reason
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The excitement in your body when you imagine one path, and the heaviness you feel when you imagine another path
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The book that seems to find you at exactly the right moment.
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The dream you keep having.
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The part of you that knows there is another way.
But we don't hear it. We don't see it. We don't feel it.
stop relying only on your mind to try to think your way into a new life—and create enough space to hear what wants to happen next.
create enough space to hear what wants to happen next.
Forcing
looks like..."I already know what should happen, so i'm trying to make reality obey me."
Listening
looks like..."Life is giving me information and i'm in conversation together with it.
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Holding our breath
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Ignoring our bodies
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Ignoring the knot in your stomach
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Asking more people for advice
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Rushing
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Feeling behind
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"I need to figure this out, now!"
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Pushing past exhaustion because we should
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wait until we're certain before we begin
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We keep asking what's the right answer?
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Checking in with our bodies
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Catching glimpses of beauty everywhere
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Softening
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We notice what gives energy and what depletes us
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we become curious instead of immediately trying to fix
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we pay attention to moments that feel alive
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we experiment
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tolerate uncertainty
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Pausing for a break when you need one
More....
You know you're forcing when...
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you reread the same email ten times becuase you're terrified of sounding stupid
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you speed thorugh traffic angrily to save three minutes
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you're exhausted, but convince yourself you just need to push a little harder.
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your shoulders are up around your ears and you don't even notice
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you're arguing with reality instead of noticing what it might be trying to tell you.
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every decision feels like there is one right one and a hundred wrong ones.
Forcing happens when we override the information we receive
we override
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hunger
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tiredness
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excitement
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dread
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curiosity
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delight
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grief
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intuition
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being so attached to the outcome that you can't see another possibility.
You know you're listening when...
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you notice you're full halfway thorugh the meal and stop becuas eyour body quietly says, i'm done.
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you catch yourself smling at a hummingbird instead of walking past it
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you realize you've been thinking in circles for an hour, and decide to go outside for a walk
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you feel your body's reactions and care to adjust
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you spontaneously start dancing in the kitchen
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you cancel something because you actually need to nap
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you keep thinking of one tiny idea so instead of dismissing it you get curious
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you cry before you understand why, and trust the understanding can come later.
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You notice the tiny whispers.
Listening asks us to be in contact with what actually is without pretending it doesn't affect us, or not caring about it's impact
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listening might say
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you're heartbroken
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you need to pause
Tiny signs you might be forcing
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You're trying to win an argument with your GPS
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you've refreshed your email six times in four minutes
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you need one more podcast before you're allowed to begin
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you're researchin ghiking boots instead of going for the walk
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you're asking ai for the perfect sentence instead of writing hte messy one.
Tiny signs you might be listening
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You took the long way home because it felt nice.
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you bought hte flowers for yourself
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you finally drank the tea while it was still hot.
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you laughed before you knew why.
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you noticed the orange tree you've walked past for three years.
Forcing is…Overriding.“I know I’m exhausted… but I’ll push through.
”Distrusting.“My body says no, but my fear says yes.
”Controlling.“There has to be one right answer.
”Gripping.“If this doesn’t work, everything falls apart.
”Narrowing.You become so focused on one outcome that you stop noticing all the other information life is offering.
Protecting.You’re trying to stay safe, even when the strategy no longer serves you.
Then listening becomes the opposite: Listening is… Receiving. Noticing. Becoming curious. Experimenting. Responding. Allowing reality to have a vote. That last line made me smile. Allowing reality to have a vote. 😂 Because forcing is basically saying, “I’ve already decided how this should go.” Listening says, “Let’s see what else is here.”
“Being so attached to an outcome that you can’t perceive there might be another way.”I think that’s one of the core ideas of your entire philosophy.What if forcing isn’t just pushing…What if it’s losing peripheral vision?When we’re afraid, our attention narrows.We see:* one solution* one timeline* one identity* one relationship* one career* one way this “has” to work out
Listening widens the frame.Suddenly we notice:* another possibility* another resource* another conversation* another season* another version of ourselves* another doorThat feels incredibly aligned with expressive arts.You’re not forcing one image onto the page.You’re letting the page reveal possibilities you couldn’t have planned.
Listening is not forcing one image on the page, but letting hte page reveal possibilities we couldn't have planned.
Try a different approach:Expressive Arts Method
SENSES,
Materials,
Unknown,
Presence,
Resources,
Imagination
LISTENING/EMERGING
When thinking harder isn’t helpingY
Why it works
You have been trying to solve everything from
inside the problem.
You replay the same questions. You push yourself to decide, change, produce or move forward. You understand your patterns—but understanding alone has not changed them. Sometimes the more closely we stare at a problem, the smaller our world becomes.
For creative, intuitive people who feel stuck in a project, a life transition, or their own expression—and want to find movement again.
Let The Creative Process hold you
Your Creative Space
the place where you can just BE, as you are, all parts welcome.
Talking can help you understand why you are stuck. Creative process lets you meet the stuckness directly: give it color, movement, shape, sound, language, and space.When you step into the unknown without demanding an answer, something unexpected can appear—a forgotten desire, a truer direction, a release, or one small next movement
No artistic experience needed. Just a willingness to explore
Trust
JOY
CREATIVITY
knowing
Rediscover your....
Inner-Peace
Clarity
ALIVENESS
softness
Let colors, materials, your body, images, sounds, stories, smells guide you.
The world of Curiosity, sensuality, play and exploration are waiting for you.
Step away from the problem.
Enter the creative process.
Return with new possibilities.
THE PROCESS
Let the stuckness move.
Let life reveal itself through your creative expression.
What we actually do
What happens in a 1:1 Session?
Explore. Experiment. Experience
We Don't just talk.
We Do. We Feel. We Embody.
Our work is centered within the HERE and NOW. Understanding insights and having an embodied experience of something different are not the same thing.
Practice being in relationship to life again
Come back home to yourself
Come back to your senses. Come back to presence. Come back to simple pleasures. Come back to your intuition. Come back to sunshine on your face. Come back to the smell of oranges. come back to colors moving across a paper. come back to the curious being within you. Come back to what you ACTUALLY want, instead of what you think you SHOULD want, come back to your heart. Come back to love. Come back to admiring the stars. Come back to beauty. Come back to really feeling alive again instead of walking around in numb zombie mode.
When we take a break from all the noise, we have more space to come back to ourselves. When we spend quality time with ourselves, we can re-enter the world feeling more refreshed and nourished. Our cups are full so we can come back to the things we care most about.
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When everything feels complicated come back to simplicity.
Through art, movement, imagery, writing, sound and play, we move away from the narrowed story—not to avoid it, but to enter a wider field of sensation, imagination and possibility.
You stop demanding an answer and begin becoming available to one. The unknown becomes a place you can meet, explore and be in relationship to your questions and challenges in creative ways.
So what happens in a 1:1 session together?
A space to let go.
A space to listen.
A space to allow.
A space to embody
A space to .
Imagine if an art class & a therapy session and a spiritual ritual had a baby.... that's what our sessions feel like.
The Journey.../ Ritual
Arrive
Intentions
Explore
Reflect
Integrate
We begin with mindfulness and grounding, so you can settle into the present
We talk about what is alive in your life right now - what feels challenging, tender, confusing, or ready to move.
We enter the creative unknown through movement, color, sound, writing, imagination, objects, improv, ritual, or something we discover together.
We notice what surprised you, what wanted expression, what you released, and what your process revealed.
We bring the discovery back into your life—with more space, choice, trust, and permission to be fully alive.
How is this different from other things?
You already tried therapy.
It didn't get you the results you want.
It's not just Therapy
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It's not just Art
You feel stuck.
We use the creative process both to understand these patterns AND to Move the stuck energy in real time!
Patterns, Insight, Reflection
Experience, Presence, Movement, Creation
Throughout the session, we move through a rhythm.
Experience, Reflect, Integrate
Often therapy spaces are missing powerful experiences to learn and grow from - it stays 'interesting'.
Often creative & expressive spaces are missing the reflection, integration, and support to make meaning and integrate new learnings. It stays 'fun'
We do both. That is why it's so powerful.
Together, its like wooooaahhhhhhhhh, crazy!! That was powerful, inspiring, magical, grounding, clarifying, and I feel lighter, clearer and more myself now. Let's do it again!
Whether you are feeling creatively blocked, don't know what to do with your life, or want to relieve stress,
Giving space to your voice, your body, your imagination, your breath, your hands, your emotions, to express themselves, creates movement! The arts help us do this.
Creative Process = Life Process
Life Process = Creative Process
How does the creative process actually help us in our lives?
Example 1)
in life.... you keep trying to control the outcome, which causes a lot of frustration and disappointment and over efforting and stress
In the studio... you keep trying ot make the painting look 'right'. We bring awareness to this. Then you soften, you experiment. you discover something beautiful that you never would have planned.
Then you ask: 'Where else in my life am i doing htis?'
It becomes easier for you to see this pattern in the office, or at home, or with your partner. And now you have lived experience of what it feels like to soften this behavior and try something new...
Example 2)
In life... you apologize before speaking and keep your opinions to yourself
In the studio... you hesitate before moving your body the way its asking for. You ask - is this ok? Together we practice the behavior of you following your instincts without waiting for permission.
Example 3)
In life.... you always rush
inthe studio.... you want to finish the piece as quickly as possible. We notice, and you breathe into a fear you have about wasting time. we follow this fear and see how it's been showing up in other areas of your life. You practice breathing and taking hte rest of hte session to paint. your piece changes and you actually enjoy the process more fully now. You practice a new relationship with time. At the end of the session you notice your shoulders dropped, and your breath feels deeper. Inside your heart you feel a bit more worthy of taking up time and space. You remember that next time you rush through sharing a story out of fear of taking too much space.
CREATIVITY GROWS CAPACITIES
In the Creative Space we practice a new way of being with the world.
We practice curiosity. we practice being with uncertainty. we practice listening. we practice responding instead of controlloing. We practice trust. We practice following pleasure and nourishment.
In the studio space the stakes are lower. you can experiment. make mistakes. try again. laugh. notice. respond. we realize nothing so serious is going on here.
WE ARE PRACTICING A DIFFERENT WAY OF MEETING LIFE
CREATIVITY asks us to use the skills (curiosity, noticing, mindfulness, that change our way of being in the world!!
The arts cultivate...
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curiosity instead of certainty
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presence instead of autopilot
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experimentation instead of perfection
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responsiveness instead of control
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trust instead of fear
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flexibility instead of rigidity
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play instead of performance
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relationship instead of domination
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wonder instead of knowing.
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ability to appreciate beauty
These aren't just art skills. they are life skills. Relationship skills. Money skills....
In the studio you practice tolerating uncertainty. responding instead of controlling. noticing. trusting your own perception.
Then with a partner, child, or your boss, these same capacities are available.
This is the Artist's Way. An artist
This is the Artist's way. An artist notices. experiments. responds. works with surprise. allows mistakes. follows curiosity. lives in relationship with what emerges. these are ways of being.
Life becomes Artful, weather you are in the studio or in the office.
Curiosity
instead of... " I have to know exactly what to do."
you begin asking,
"I wonder what would happen if..."
LIFE:
You stop trying ot save your marriage with the same argument you've had a hundred times.
You ask one different question.
Presence
Instead of living tomorrow...
You notice today.
LIFE: you actually taste your coffee. you notice your daughter wants to show you something. you realize your body has been asking for sleep for weeks.
Flexibility
Instead of, this wasn't the plan,
you ask, now what?
LIFE:
the project changes direction
your child gets sick
the vacation is canceled
You adapt instead of collapse
Play
instead of performing, you participate.
LIFE:
You dance in your kitchen. you make a terrible sketch and laugh, y
You stop measuring every experience by whether it was productive
Experimentation
Instead of needing certainty...
you try
LIFE:
you apply for the job
You ask someone out
you move the couch
tiny experiments replace giant decisions.
Trust
Instead of asking everyone else
you begin listening inward
Life:
you decline the invitation that looks good on paper but feels wrong in your body.
You stop rewriting the email seventeen times.
Wonder
Instead of 'I already know'
you become available to surprise
Life:
You discover a completely different career
a new friendship
a different version of yourself.
not becuas eyou planne dit, because you noticed it unfolding.
Relationship
Instead of trying to control life.
you begin collaborating with it
Process & Products/pieces
Up until now we've been talking largely about hte creative process.
But we must give equal acknowledgement to the beautiful or ugly pieces of art that come thorugh. each one with thier own personalities, their own messages and energies to share. They are just as important. They are also part of the process. because when the product arrives.... the process doesn't end. we keep relating to it. think about a song that you are still listening to 60 years after it was produced. Or a film that has stayed in your heart for years. These pieces give us opportunities to keep relating. To keep revisiting stories, emotions, archetypes that are meaningful to us. They capture moments in time that come thorugh our consciousness, through the collective with a particular energy. And as we carry the art pieces forth, we also carry it's energy forth... maybe for generations forward.
Multiple art modalities for multi-dimensional human beings!!!!
We don't need to just choose one truth!!! One way of being!! One hobby!! One opinion. It's ok to be complex, and the world would probably be a more peaceful place if humans knew how to hold more complexity. It's ok to have ironies and inconsistencies within us. There are more colors than simply black and white (thank God!)
Expressive Arts helps us embrace all the colors and the range of this beautiful life!
Expressive arts as practice
the studio becomes a pl;ace to practice curiosity, experimentation, trust, flexibility, presence. These capacitiesshow up in our lives.
Expressive arts as language
Sometimes you can't think your way to something. an image knows first. or your body knows. or a sound knows. Something needs to come thorugh and be expressed. Through symbols, imagination, and the archetypal dimension.
Expressive arts as relationship
Together we relate. the client has the opportunity to be witnessed, accompanied. reflected, invited, co-regulated, This is the therapeutic relationship itself. a relational container.
art opens conversations between makers, with time, with memory. with the unconscius, with the future. with other people, with life itself.
Why does expressive arts work???
The Medicine
Expressive arts as change/creating something new
The artwork itself matters. not just becasue it represents something. because it becomes something. it changes energy into form. creating something that didn't exist yesterday matters. Something remains that carries the medicine forward. the object keeps working on them even after the session. Creation affirms life. when someone who has felt numb or hopeless or disconnected creates something... they're participating with life again. they're not only consuming life, they are participating. something moved thorugh me that didn't exist before.
Sometimes the breathrough comes because someone learns to tolerate uncertainty
Sometimes the breakthrough comes because an iage finally gives form to something htat had no words.
Sometimes the breakthrough comes because another human witnessed them with immense care.
sometimes the breakthrough coes because they carry a small sculpture home and for months afterward it quietly reminds them of a part of themselves they thought they lost.
Art is an ecology as are we as humans. Every form nourishes the others. That's why we are intermodal/interdisciplinary artists. So that each dimension can feed the others. so that our mother, can feed our child, and our child our mother. so that our work can feed our creativity. so that our creativity can feed our relationships. so that our relationships can feed our finances. nothing lives in isolation. everything is connected. And when we are widely connected we are supported, aligned, coherent and living on purpose with joy.
We are a living Ecology and art helps us feed all our habitats!
Intermodal transfers....
What changes can we see???
the person becomes someone capable of being present.
feeling
creating.
loveing
risking
resting
receiving
trusting
living.
Sometimes, in order to come home we need to first go on a journey into the unknown. The Creative Process allows us to dip our toes into this realm.
The more we can learn to open our senses, listen, and receive creative inspiration, the greater our capacity becomes to allow movement and respond to life. THIS is what we are doing here.
Imagine..... situation that they can see this in..... how does it actually help them in life...
The more we can allow, the richer, and more sensual, relaxed, exciting, flowing, trusting our life becomes.
LET LIFE FEEL FUN AGAIN
When you have the time and space to focus on you, you start to feel safe again, present again, curious again, connected to your joy again.
Remember what that feels like??
A space just for YOU to do YOU in any way YOU want
What if you already are the person you are trying to become, and our job here is simply to help you be more YOU!?? There is no 'right' way to do this life. There is YOUR way. You get to make up your own rules, make it fun, and follow what lights you up (even if you don't know what that is yet). That is what we're doing here. We are removing all the layers of gunk that stand in the way of you remembering how incredibly AMAZING you are, and we are shining a light on all the things that make you smile, and your heart exhale in relief. How do we do all that you ask? We enter the world of art, imagination, experimentation, and your own inner wisdom that has a lot of things to express!
REMINDER: You already are AMAZING!!!!
The Challenges are the Gifts.
Why exa??
MOST IMPORTANTLY..... WE LISTEN TO WHAT IS WANTING TO EMERGE in the session, and that might look different for each person depending on the day or even the moment.
WE DON'T PUSH.
WE DON'T FORCE.
WE ALLOW.
This is a space for YOU to do YOU!!
Permission to feel free
I want you to take up space here!! That's what its for. This is a space for you to experiment with what that looks like for you in each moment.
If you hate one of my brilliant invitations that I offer, you can say 'NO!!!'
If all you want to do in the session is lay on the floor, because that's what actually feels good to you, DO IT!
If you have a secret desire to be a performer, or write a novel, or sing out loud not just in the shower, we create space for you to try, to make mistakes, to be imperfect, ugly, weird, to look stupid, and then to just... try again.
I See You
You care dear one. You care deeply.
You feel a lot. You think a lot. You want a lot.
When you love, you LOVE. When you try, you TRY. When you 'fail', you feel like you've FAILED..... You are a person with so much depth and richness inside you, but you feel disconnected. You feel like something is just out of reach. You've had glimpses of your power, but somehow it feels like those moments come and go (with more emphasis on the going part), you have beautiful dreams, but they also feel overwhelming and you don't know where to start, or you have started, but now feel stuck
You know there is more inside you that wants to come out.
Why Now??
Because we need you. NOW. Seriously.
We need YOU. Not Betty and Bob or Laura and Joe.... The world needs YOU!!
You are the only YOU there will EVER be!!! EVER. There never was a never you before and there never will be another you again. .... Let that sink in for a second....
You've probably noticed that our world is changing. Fast. With our current lifestyles people are feeling more disconnected, sedentary, and pressured. The world asks us to constantly produce more, be better, try harder, work faster and do all of that largely on your own!
What the heck?!?!? And we are just supposed to do all that with no problems??
Nope.
The challenges are real. The anxiety is real. The depression is real. The not-enoughness is real.
We were never supposed to be able to do all that on our own.
Over time, the pieces of ourself become fragmented. We try to be the best parents to our children, and the best bad-asses at work, and SPECIFICS....
But our WHOLE gets divided. our attention and energy get scattered. So soon we feel that we are never truly present where we are, and what we are doing is never enough. The world asks so much of us.
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I’m constantly overwhelmed.
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I overthink everything.
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I don’t know what I want anymore.
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I’m afraid to begin unless I can do it perfectly.
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I’ve lost touch with joy.
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I want to trust myself again.
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Where did my creativity go?
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Why does everything feel so serious?
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What am I doing with my life?!?!
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Who am I and how do I express ALL of myself
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When will I feel like i've arrived?
OR MAYBE YOU FEEL LIKE...
There's more inside you. Let it out.
FAQ's/What if's...
Why Art.... just for fun??
I don't have time just to do arts and crafts... to make art just for fun.... why should i???
Why Expressive Arts Therapy??
It's time to bring those peices HOME
Home to yourself. Home to life.
Remember what if feels like to trust yourself? Remember what it feels like to feel joy because a hummingbird came to your window? Remember what it feels like to even notice that the hummingbird came to your window and to actually pause and admire it?? Or let it make you wonder.... about beauty, and creatures, and nature, and how can those wings even move so fast?!?!
When we let ourselves be touched by life, we know we're alive.... otherwise, we're kind of just on autopilot. Numb. Going through the motions without feeling the zest of life with us. The joy. The mystery. The beautiful surprises.
READ MORE....
Ok, that all sounds nice, but how does this 'Expressive Arts Therapy' thing actually work?
FIRST.....
We start with practicing PRESENCE.
We do this through
Breathing Noticing Feeling Sensing
When we give ourselves the time and space to slooooowwww doooowwwwnnn, we can begin to notice things that we've never noticed before. Maybe it's the first time you noticed your body's sensations all day. Or maybe you notice that you're carrying grief. Or maybe you notice an image of a blue doorway that pops into your imagination and makes you wonder...
This is where we practice getting perspective, feel connected to yourself again, and remembering what inner peace feels like. Or, we get more clarity about what is standing in the way of you feeling connected to all those things (like the to-do list that keeps popping up in your mind etc. )
READ MORE....
Then, we take mindfulness and we bring it into action.
What?!?!? Crazy. I know.
MINDFULNESS in ACTION. ..... Yup
Aligned Action.
We practice listening so you can receive more, allow more, and take inspired action
Follow your bliss. Follow your fun. Follow your pleasure. Follow your clarity. Follow your good feelings. Follow them as far as they will take you, and more will come.” ― Abraham Hicks
When you feel connected to yourself, life flows with less effort/more easily.
“You came to RADIATE the fullness of who you are.” ― Abraham Hicks
“Focus on how you want to feel and let the Universe fill in the details.” ― Abraham Hicks
And take everything I just told you with a grain of salt because
Yes, working with art is FUN! But it's not ONLY that.......
Phronesis - is an ancient Greek word meaning practical wisdom
We set up an expansive environment for you to explore in, so that you can come back with new tools and embodied wisdom to apply back into your life.
WHY ME?
We are co-creators here
and I want you to know, I FULLY TRUST in your inner wisdom and light!
I am not here to tell you how to change, and fix yourself, and be different.
NO!!
I am here, doing what I do because I SEE you.
If you are on this page reading these words it means you are special, and there is so much inside you that really really wants to come out (even if you haven't admitted that out loud yet, secretly you know it's true)
My job here is to help you be MORE YOU.
I also believe my work is to help you feel connected to something greater... wheather that is spirit, nature, your community, your ancestors, or the world of creativity and artists (this is deeply personal and different for each person). We can't do this life alone. The more supported we feel, the more resilience and courage, and love we will keep cultivating in our hearts. You are not alone my friends, eventhough sometimes it can feel like it.
In addition to that, I run a very eclectic ship. I like variety, which is why Expressive Arts Therapy is an absolutely perfect fit for me. I don't like to feel limited. I love having options, wearing any color I want to, spending an hour screaming, the next hour dancing, the next hour, writing a new story, the next hour planning a trip to Morrocco. I'm a wild creature. I love being open to what life wants to send my way. As such, I've been all over the world, met some of the most beautiful people, have had all kinds of crazy experiences (maybe I'll tell you a story sometime over tea...), and have learned about life from villagers in Nepal, yogis in the Himalayas, children in Fiji, and Magicians and storytellers from every corner of the planet. I've searched high and low to meet the best of the best (SERIOUSLY!). I've lived nomadically for years, explored many alternative communities, and learned about life through the eyes of locals.
I've learned that there are so many ways to see and do life, there is no 'right' or 'wrong' way. I've also learned that at the end of the day we all just want to love and feel loved. We want to feel connected. And we want tools and channels to express ourselves, and to play, and to create, and to be in an active and nourishing relationship with life itself.
I've had all of these experiences so that I can embody these teachings and carry this wisdom forward to YOU, and so that you may take these teachings and carry them forward through you, in your own special way. Pretty beautiful huh....
For me LIFE IS....... short and precious and a cabaret!(I told you already - I like having options) And I want to live it deeply. I want to celebrate it masterfully. And I want to help you do the same.
How is Expressive Arts Therapy Different?
We create a space for YOUR authentic expression, not Johnny's or Annie's or Sarah's or Melanie's.
Just yours.
This is more than typical talk therapy
We work within the sacred realm. Both of us are asked to surrender inside the container, in a portal between time and space.
Our sessions together are not only sessions. Each meeting is a sacred journey that allows you to arrive, jHave an experience /journey into the unknown, come back a little more changed, and re-enter your life integrating new sensations, insights, and perspectives, felt sense in your body and knowing.
It's like a tiny Hero's Journey.
The EMERGING
Although we do have a container for the session, I can't tell you exactly what will happen. This is exactly the process we are exploring together, as co-creators. The guiding principle in my sessions, is that we both become present and curious about what is wanting to emerge, rather than what we think should emerge.
We can guide your journey, and I will also ask you to bring your intentions and desires, but The process has an intelligence of its own. And that is what we are here to research and discover together.
When both you and I can let go of expectations of what should happen, we can allow something more intelligent to come through. That is what we call the CREATIVE PROCESS. The creative process asks us to surrender beyond our egos, and trust in the invisible and unknown.
This is something humans don't like to do. We like knowing things. We like knowing where we are going. What we are doing. What hte speed limits are. Where we can park.....
The expressive arts process, asks us to both LET GO & SHAPE. This is the dance we are practicing in the sessions together.
Why Now???
At this point, you might have a, felt sense, in your body. (If you aren't sure what you feel right now thats ok too, and if you would like to explore this more, this is also a lot of what we will do together in sessions - Help you feel what you feel, give it a name, and find an expression for it - baby steps.)
You get to feel playful again, you get to take up space just for you, you get to feel pleasure and joy, you get to feel relaxed, you get to remember how to trust yourself and trust life again. You get to feel like you again.
Whats the transformation?
If that DOESN'T feel like the most important thing to you.... than this might now be the thing for you, and I thank you for reading this far and feeling it out.
a 'Parting wish'
We are all at different places on our journey. I deeply honor this. If you would like to enter your wish HERE (I will be reading these)
I will send you a blessing to you from the bottom of my heart and say a prayer that your wish may be fulfilled. (this also gives me feedback about who is visiting and what they are looking for which helps me serve people like you).
If you want it to feel like the most important thing to you again, but you're not really sure how you feel right now, you are still in the right place. I'm happy to jump on a phone call with you so you can feel into it more.
The Invocation
And if you're heart is beating a little bit faster, and you are so ready for this journey and you are like 'bring it on!!' , we can still have consultation call, or you can book your first session directly here.
The field responds, the moment we say yes.
So dear one, what are you saying YES to??
But I encourage you to focus on no more than 3 words that you are bringing into your heart, and stepping into .
If you would like a creative fortune cookie/or to find out what your creative perception language is (auditory, kinesthetic, visual....?)(which artist you were in a past life)
and to stay updated with my blog, events, and news
Put your info here.
Love
At the end of the day, all of this comes down to love. When you are 110 years old looking back at your life, you will remember how open your heart was and how deeply you loved here. I want you to feel very fulfilled when that day comes.
In the meantime, try writing yourself a letter from love, or write a love letter to someone you love, or perhaps to a stranger
If you'd like to be inspired and inspire others, share your letter with a community of love-letter- writers, submit HERE
and join author of 'Big Magic', and 'Eat, Pray, Love', Liz Gilbert and her project 'letters from love'.
Or, you might want to write a little note, roll it up, and stick it on a stranger's car window. The world could definitely use some more surprises and LOTS more kindness.
MAYBE YOU'RE HERE BECAUSE...
You don't have to think your way through.
YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL.
The world needs YOUR unique expression. The one that only YOU can bring.
Why is this important??
The creative process mimics our life proess. The more we practice letting go in our art, the more we can let go in our life.
The same patterns that keep us stuck in art are often the same patterns that keep us stuck in our lives.
A repeatable way to meet uncertainty, creativity and change—moving from a life question, into the creative unknown, and back again.
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Become unstuck
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feel more alive
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trust yourself again
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feel adventure in uncertainty instead of dread
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express yourself freely
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listen to your inner knowing
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follow what wants to emerge
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return to your truest essence
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feel guided
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allow life to surprise you again
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feel more expressive
Whats the transformation?
What Becomes Possible?
We Allow. Don't Force
More room to breathe. More freedom to feel. More courage to express.
Let go of pressure, perfectionism, old roles, and feelings you have been carrying alone. Reconnect with your body, intuition, imagination, pleasure, and inner sense of direction. Meet difficult experiences with curiosity, compassion, ritual, beauty, and play. Feel more authentic, expressive, trusting, connected, joyful and alive in your own life.
Whats the transformation?
From stuck, disconnected, and overthinking to alive, embodied, trusting, expressive, and deeply connected to yourself.
Create from connection—not pressure.
Move through perfectionism, fear of beginning, comparison, and creative paralysis.
Find clarity when you have too many ideas—or no idea what comes next.
Reconnect with your intuition, spiritual life, body, imagination, pleasure, and play.
Build trust in your own process so your projects—and your life—can begin moving again.
I'm Karen
I create a space where the sacred and the ordinary can meet—where you can loosen your grip, listen beneath the noise, and let your own creative process guide us toward what is asking to emerge.
Imagine...
What if we gave you the space to scream and cry and get messy and angry and silly and creative and quiet and space for absolutely whatever else needed to come through?? YOU HAD SPACE FOR YOU
What if you could let go of all the doubt and fear you've been carrying so that you could make space for your essence to reemerge from within?? YOU COULD FINALLY LET GO?
What if you remembered how to experience wonder and joy in uncertainty instead of pure dread?
GAVE YOURSELF PERMISSION TO FEEL WONDER & JOY AGAIN?
What if you could release expectations around making 'good art', and just made art...?
THERE WERE NO EXPECTATIONS AND YOU COULD JUST BE
What would that you look like? How would that you feel? How would that you spend your time?
the Possibilities
Join me in the Unknown. Come just as you are.
Let's see what wants to EMERGE
You don't need to have it all figured out.
In everyday life, we often repeat what we already know. The same thoughts. The same roles. The same ways of protecting ourselves.The Creative process opens a small doorway beyond the familiar. Through an image, a movement, a sound, a story, or a moment of play, you may meet a feeling, truth, resource, or possibility you could not have planned. The creative process reminds us how to trust and let life flow through us.
YOU ARE CREATIVE!
You DO belong here.
We are not making 'good' or 'pretty' art. It is perfectly fine for you to make 'bad' or 'ugly' art here.
Also, we are all creative. Whether you think of yourself as an artist or not.
One thing I love about art is that it has space to hold everyone and everything. nothing and nobody is too much, not enough, too this or too that for art. Art welcomes it all.
Welcome Home
ART MODALITIES
a
Mind Body Spirit
relationship
SPIRIT
For me working in a spiritual way orients our work in two ways.
1) It asks the question- What do you believe in? Is there something greater you can surrender to? You don't need to believe in God, or the universe, or have any particular beliefs. This is a very personal journey for us all. But I do believe if we can feel part of something greater- it might be nature, the cosmos, a community, lineage, it helps us feel supported and reminds us of our place here on earth, giving us a greater perspective and context to relate to. This is a huge resource that can help us access resilience and faith in challenging times.
2) I love connecting with the parts of you that are beyond your mind and body. The essence of you that is harder to describe. It feels like your soul, your heart, your essence, or your inner knowing. This is where your callings come from. It brings gifts of intuition, and helps us be humble before the mystery. As humans, there is so much we do not know, and I think it serves us to remember this and to stay open to the unknown, to remember wonder, and to allow the surprises to guide us forward.
Along my varied journey, spirituality has consistently been a nourishing relationship that i've cultivated in many forms. For me the creative act is one of the most spiritual acts we can engage in. Life-Force energy, is the creative energy. The very act of existing is inherently creative. I am a huge student of the Divine and one of my greatest pleasures is the continued exploration of it, especially through the arts.
BODY
The body is like a compass. The body has wisdom that speaks in a much more primal and direct way than the mind. The more we can learn to access our body's wisdom, sensations, and emotions, the more feedback we will have in real time about where we are going.
A big part of our work together revolves around developing a more intimate relationship with these beautiful bodies that take us all around, from here to there. Often times, there are many layers of numbness or unprocessed emotions that make it more challenging for us to actually feel what we feel.
What's beautiful about the body is that it likes movement. Weather that movement is a breath of relief, a sound, a stretch, a dance, laying in stillness (sometimes stillness IS the movement) and simply sensing. The body likes when thoughts move, when feelings move, when desires move. Our bodies can be our best friends on the transformational road, if we as we develop relationship with them.
Another of my favorite 'body things' are the senses!! Senses make life SO FUN! Senses help to bring us into the present moment where we can taste flavors, smell flowers, see rainbows! Opening our senses are a HUGE part of this creative work, and the path of bringing joy and aliveness into our lives!
MIND
The mind is that special thing that makes us so very human. The mind can get a bad reputation in spaces like these. And we can blame our mind for a lot of our challenges. They are tricky things, but they are also a wonderful part of us. And the work is about learning how to put them in service of us, rather than us being in service of them.
What does this mean?
This means creating awareness about what thoughts we are thinking. Once we do this we can develop the skills to continually check in with our thoughts. The main question we want to ask is - 'Is this thought supporting my deepest desires, or is it taking me away from what I actually want to be experiencing?'
Many people don't realize that thoughts are choices that we get to choose, all day long every day. I know, it sounds like hard work. It is. But it's important work and it get's easier the more we practice it. We are incredibly powerful beings. We have the power to create what we want in this life. That doesn't mean that shit doesn't happen, it does. But we get to choose how we want to respond to the shit when it does happen.
Over the years, we have learned to start living in our minds, make all of our decisions from there, and try to force happiness from there. But we were never meant to live in our minds. It's just one aspect of ourselves and as we bring it back into balance, we restore harmony with our wholeness.
SPIRIT
YOUR INNER BEING WANTS MORE SPACE
Does your inner being want more space?
In a world full of DOING, it's hard to slow down and BE.
But newness can't come through if there is no space for it.
Are you....
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Carrying too much
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Tired of trying to control everything?
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Feeling disconnected from your joy, body, or creativity?
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Holding yourself back?
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In a transition, and don’t know what comes next.
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Longing to feel free?
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Wanting to be fully yourself?
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Feeling stuck in life?
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Creatively blocked in a project?
It's time to Let Go.
✦
You don’t need to know where this will lead.
Follow what feels alive.
Begin with a free conversation. Bring what you are carrying, what you are longing for, or simply the feeling that something wants to change.
Book your free discovery call↗
75-minute private sessions · Online worldwide
It's ok to slow down
Why is this work so special???
The Creative Process.
The creative process reminds us how to trust and let go of control and expectations. It connects us to the creative source and helps us allow life to flow through us.
Creativity becomes a doorway back to yourself, not something to perform or do correctly
Disappear into the creative process again. Lose time. surprise yourself. feel life moving through you again. Make something you didn't know you had inside. Remember what it feels like to be fully alive.
You don't need another course. You don't need another breakthrough. You don't need to force yourself to be more disciplined. You need somewhere your whole self is invited. the part that knows. the part that's terrified. the part that's wildly creative. the part that has forgotten how to play.
You miss yourself. not the healed version. the optimized version.not the productive version. the version of you that is just present. who feels wonder. who trusts your instincts. who isn't performing creativity, just living it.
Talking can help you understand why you are stuck. Creative process lets you meet the stuckness directly: give it color, movement, shape, sound, language, and space
You have sensitivity, depth, and desire. But something isn’t moving.
I’m doing all the “right” things, but I don’t feel alive.I’m in-between identities and don’t know what comes next.I have a project I can’t begin—or finish.Perfectionism has taken the joy out of creating.I keep comparing myself and losing my own voice.I miss feeling inspired, expressive, and connected to myself.
Just come as you are. ALL of you is welcome here, just as you are.
You are enough.
Sign up to receive a FREE 20 min Discovery Phone Call!
1-1 Sessions
I'm here to support you with anything and everything. Through Expressive Arts Therapy we navigate life's complexities and rediscover your inner strength and creativity.
In this 1hr 15 min online session we focus on your unique creative process. This means you don't need any artistic skills to benefit—just a willingness to explore!
Express Yourself
In our session we use painting, sound, improvisation, writing, theater, photography, film, ritual, movement, nature, and any other creative modality you can think of! Combining yoga practices, breathwork, somatic awareness, embodiment tools, mindfulness, and art as therapy unites the body, mind and soul into a holistic and creative way of life that feels truly ALIVE! Re-connect with yourself, your relationships, and the world around you, remembering your naturally radiant way of BEING!
What is Expressive Arts Therapy?
Benefits
Why Choose Expressive Arts Therapy?
Expressive Arts gives us many tools that help us access many different layers of ourselves as opposed to traditional talk therapy, where our main outlet is verbal. The use of different modalities allows for a richly holistic and textured approach to healing and discovery.
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Move from inaction to action
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Reduce stress & anxiety so you can feel calm & peaceful
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Create clarity out of confusion
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Transform fear into excitement
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Use anger to find acceptance
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Let go of control and embrace trust
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Release unhelpful patterns and allow change
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Turn separation into connection and intimacy
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Feel abundant instead of overwhelmed
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Embrace your chaos in order to find purpose & direction
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Discern between depletion and nourishment
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Release doubt and practice self-esteem
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Permit yourself to feel joy!
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Reduce comparisons and enjoy your unique self!
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Identify inner strengths and resources
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Find what gives your life meaning
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Release shame and develop understanding and compassion
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Live with integrity and alignment with YOUR values
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Vision development
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Uncover new possibilities from narrow perspectives
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Live with wonder!
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Feel the connection to something greater than the self
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Creative problem-solving in sticky situations
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Practice presence
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Release perfectionism and enjoy the process
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Give yourself permission to fail and have fun experimenting
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Let go of inhibitions and free your expression
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Develop intuition & courage to follow your gut instincts
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Embrace your inner artist and try new things
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Connect to your body and cultivate somatic awareness
... just to name a few
CLIENT REVIEWS
"I had a very beautiful and unique experience with Karen. We worked on a difficult topic and I had new and interesting insights about myself and what really bothers me in the situation I was in. The way of approaching the fears and insecurities with expressive art therapy was a very powerful and positive experience. With Karen's help it felt playful and easy. She made me feel very comfortable with whatever I was doing. I felt like a kid again. The feeling when you‘re just enjoying your ideas while playing not thinking about how others would think about you. I would definitely recommend this experience."
Eliza, Italy
KAREN QUELLER
Expressive Arts Therapy M.A
Dance Movement Therapy, Yoga RYT
With a B.A in psychology from UCSD, many years of various dance training, yoga certification, a strong spiritual practice, experiences both teaching and studying art, and working in the art department within the film industry - my life led me to Expressive Arts. It was the most natural next step. I feel privileged to have received my Master's degree from the pioneers of this field at the European Graduate School.
I am so excited to share EMERGING Expressive Arts work with all of you, as I know it's power to help us live with passion, ALIVENESS, meaning, connection, nourishment, freedom and openness for change and growth! Expressive Arts is a path of remembering our essence and our innate wisdom.
Mind .:. Body .:. Soul
ART IS MEDICINE
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Embrace Change
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Self Discovery
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Let Go
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Develop Trust
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Creative Problem Solving
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Transform Fear
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Find Inspiration
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Enhance Clarity
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Stress Management
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Life Transitions
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Vision Development
SURRENDER
Expressive Arts Therapy is a playground for stepping into the unknown so you can practice LETTING GO more easily in life. Through the arts we transform uncertainty into adventure, stress into trust, and challenges into your gifts. This work is nourished through experimentation and by saying YES to getting out of your comfort zone (or at least an "ok, I'm willing to try it once"). It is deep, beautiful, soul-stirring work that can surprise us, challenge us, and bring joy to the process of change (which is such a relief because change can be scary!)
For Who?
This work can be used with anyone, in any situation. If you are reading this right now, there is probably a reason why. Either your curiosity, desire, or a difficulty brought you here and you want to do something about that. Engaging in the arts helps us take action towards the things we truly care about. If you are unsure about this process feel free to CONTACT ME! Say hello, let me know what you are questioning and we can feel it out together.
Online
I work with clients from all over the world!
Meet me from the comfort of your own home!
Many people ask me - HOW DOES THIS WORK ONLINE? Beautifully! Although getting together in person is a lot of fun, doing expressive arts together online is just as effective. The constraints of working online can often force us to get even more creative and develop greater flexibility in order to adapt to what is available in our surroundings. The other great thing about doing this online is that you are working in YOUR environment which allows this work to integrate more effectively into your daily life. In our sessions, we transform your familiar space into a sacred space. You will be surprised at how much beauty and magic is present in corners you usually walk by everyday ;).
Where Do We Work?