I love to paint, photograph, cook, sew, collage... any form of creation, really!
My varied artistic interests have helped me to work with all kinds of people as an Art Therapist.
I had the privilege of photographing Heidi and Graham's wedding on June 6. They are such a beautiful couple, and put so much thought and work into their wedding. It was so much fun to be able to capture the details of their wedding with my camera! It was also great to spend some time with them again in my hometown of Lacombe.
Earlier this year, I lead some of my clients at the day program through this art activity. I photographed them, then traced their images with permanent marker so that I just had the outlines of all of their features. Then I photocopied it, and voila! Self-portrait coloring sheets! My clients each colored 4+ copies in all different colors, then we placed them on poster sheets in the arrangement of Andy Warhol's "Marilyn". We then sealed everything with mod podge. The results were fantastic! My clients loved it, and it was so neat to see how differently all of them color! So, I decided to try this activity with the kids with autism that I work with. Again, great results!
This past month, I lead a photography program at the Day Program. My clients love photography! And they are so interested in how it works. One day, I brought in my little, yellow, point-and-click, fish-eye lens camera. I took my clients for a walk and let them take the photos with this camera. I am not sure if they were being vain or wanting to see the photo being taken, but they kept on turning the camera on themselves! Here are some of the results.
I lead Art Therapy sessions at a school for children with autism. They are having a fund raising gala soon, and so last month I was approached by a committee from the school, requesting that I help them create some art for the gala. Together, we decided that I would turn one of the student's drawings into paintings. And so I was handed a very large stash of all these amazing drawings of all kinds of animals and people in all different situations, each drawn by one of the students.
I picked out seven small portions of her drawings and tried my best to render them with paint on canvas. Although I love outcome, they do not compare to her original drawings! Her drawings are so playful and uninhibited and unimaginably creative! And some dinosaurs!
As an artist, I initially fell in love with photography and painting. Since then I have dabbled in many media, from sewing to printmaking to collaging. I am constantly discovering new things that capture my interest!
As an Art Therapist, I initially began working with women and children with cancer, and did my thesis in this area. Since then I have also worked with seniors, adults with disabilities, families who are grieving, and children with autism.
My wide range of interests as an artist has helped me help a wide variety of clients! I am constantly learning and discovering new ways to work as an artist, and in turn work with others to create art as an Art Therapist.