Symbolic Projections

In the previous posts I described some of the attributes you may want to look for when selecting a children's book which to alter  Altered Book {Intern Edition}: Work in Progress Preview 1  and then I gave a couple of research sources and tips on how to mix-media with traditional materials and organics in this post  Altered Book {Intern Edition}: Work in Progress Preview 2 . In that last post I voiced my intention for the book. A sort of tribute from past experiences and resource for future interns working through an art therapy internship. As mentioned before I'll be using nuggets of knowledge left behind from prior interns as well as more "inspirational" sorts of generic content that I ascribe as being helpful for the students to know/think about. It is rare for me to use 1 media...maybe rarer still is for me not to think or work in layers (tho it happens at times). On the page-spread with the white daisy for example... Background Daisy image. G...

In my last post I gave a few suggestions on selecting a book and prepping it. If you still haven't selected a book take a peek here  Altered Book {Intern Edition}: Work in Progress Preview 1  before proceeding. Over the last few years I have had the opportunity to work with and supervise some very creative and motivated art therapy students. Each having to come face-2-face with the good the bad and the hairy of an internship site. That is the reason for this altered book. Advice, inspiration, motivations from myself and prior students for internship survival... tho maybe it will be much more.... Maybe it will be: ...an informal guide to thriving at an art therapy internship site... (remember, the title is still a work in progress so bare with me here) On this post we will pick-up after the children's book was prepped (see Work in Progress Preview 1 ) and a theme selected...  Magazine images can be added-to and extended in order to facilitate incorporation...

Back in August while perusing 6 Degrees of Creativity  (or one of their affiliates) and their creative antics I noticed the use of childrens books for altered books, and I was floored! WHY hadn't I thought of that! I hit-up a thrift store and sought out a childrens' book immediately. The next few posts will show the progress/process. Since I am still working on it I do not have a title for this book yet. I do have a theme/topic I am pursuing. The book will be a compilation of advice and wise words for future interns. Something to inspire them to think outside the box (ie. the book will have various techniques)...and so on I'm sure more ideas will present themselves as I trudge onward... Below are some basic considerations when starting your very own Altered Book using a sturdy children's book. Book selection is not to be taken lightly! Choose a book, not just any book, pick one with nice thick pages...even if there are few of them. My book only has 12 pages....

Inchies in process of being stained. I recently read artist Seth Apter ’s post on a question we artists are often asked: How long did it take you? The following blog post will be my response to his thought provoking post which I found rang a few bells for me. Seth’s post for October 20th, 2014 can be reached via this link: The Surface of my Work So, how long does it take to create? ...the art therapist’s perspective. I will give voice to some accumulated thoughts on the particular topic of response art. I feel it is important to make the distinction between response art and other artwork I may engage-in for the purpose of “creating something pretty”. Response art to me indicates a creative process (and/or artifact) that seeks to process an experience; usually to do with intense experiences encountered as a part of carrying out the duties of our profession [for more on response art in art therapy see Fish, 2006, 2008, 2012]. Beginning. When the creative bug cal...

"Don't let one cloud obliterate the whole sky." Anais Nin On my way to work one morning I noticed the sky streaking by the window. I cannot say what had consumed my attention up to that moment, save the monotony of the road and passing cars. Dawn came as a surprise. It brought an artists palette of long wispy streaks... oranges, magentas, and golds. It may have had teals and purples too. The image persisted long after the casual blues and white puffy clouds set-in. The memory persisted long into my work day. By mid-day I knew I wanted needed to bring  that moment into one of my groups, and I knew just the one. Using rectangular pieces of orange hanging folders (yep, recycling), small sponges (cut from packing material), and craft acrylics I set to the task of composing a mindful-art experience. The beauty is in the simplicity of the materials and the 'magic' that takes place in the process. After our usual group discussion I set out to be their guide...

At times it seems that even when we mean to stay put, there's invisible forces pulling or pushing this way and that. Not necessarily in the direction expected, but hopefully where we need to be. Amidst all the travel the artsy soul will still create. And while creating something out of nothing is often necessary in this line of work it doesn't have to be that way while on vacation. That's where the portable art kit comes in: Have kit. Will travel.  Having a portable art kit makes sense for the creative souls on the go. Art therapists, clients, students, et al could benefit from having and making use of one. Here's some basic considerations. 1. Size & type of pouch/container. This will effect how much you can take. 2. For contents, begin with basics then work your way to the frills. Writing/drawing tools, adhesive, cutting tool, liquid media, papers, other embellishments, etc. 3. That's it, all done. Now go back and spread it all out again...

Dare I ask, what is a travel journal? I will be the first to admit that I ventured down this road without the slightest clue as to what I was getting into. Back in June, as I turned-in my IRB application and took a break from dissertation writing I decided a change was in order. Not a permanent one, oh no. Just a small change lasting the entirety of the month of July (give or take a few days). That is how I began down the path of making the journal. Initially I referred to it as my July Journal. The one I would toil over the course of the month of July and my pending travels (to the country of Texas and back to my humble Florida). My very first was last year at this time, that book was made in an accordion style from 1 sheet of paper. In it I documented the events surrounding the AATA 2013 conference in Seattle. The nitty-gritty: book measures about 7.5”x3”x?(its still growing) Cover: I used cardboard sections cut from a found box for the cover & chose to cov...

Returning from this years’ AATA Conference in San Antonio thankful to have connected and reconnected with so many amazing art therapists. It’s been busy and I didn’t mean to set the blog aside, but here’s some visual yummies to begin to make things up. Last August (yep, 2013) I made a small accordion book. In this accordion style, I essentially pieces together several strips of paper into one continuous page that folds at repeating intervals. I gave the book purpose when I decided to use it as a place to document art techniques. These art techniques were small samplings of ones I would be using in my groups. Today I completed the small book and am posting some of the images here with brief dialogue on some of the techniques. If there's interest I will consider separate posts later-on. Book Cover: Layered tissue paper with pressed leaves. Accordion style pages were 'seamed' with strips of tea bags. On left: Tea bag sheets can be used to age/antique.   On ...

[I've had this entry on draft mode since the night I read the call for papers on the last AATA journal. In essence: How art therapists grapple with cultural/diversity/identity. ] To be quite honest, I am still naive (but getting better every day). I didn't think much about diversity or culture growing-up. I don't think most of us do.  Until it happened, I stepped out of the nurturing pockets I’d grown-up in. Quite possibly there had been some hints at it, but I was unable to recognize them for what they were. Everyone else was quite like my family...then again I did not expect to be isolated because of my career choices either. Singled-out on another front for not fitting the preexisting categories. Not a teacher of children. Not a "starving" artist. Not a psychologist nor a medical doctor (didn't marry one of those either). Yes. All that is my last name...that part too. No you can't just shove some of it as a middle name. I don’t have one...

Found some time this weekend to de-stress and what better way than delving into one of those “for later” piles. This particular pile consisted of a menagerie of brown paper bags (and the envelopes they were mailed-in). They were accompanied by notes, quotes, dyed papers, hand made paper, ribbons, and on and on, etc.   These bits of mail have been coming-in at wonderfully random intervals for maybe 2 months. Now it is time to bind the collection into the Stress Relief Recipe Book it was meant for. To the bag full of bits of mail I also added: ruler, pencil, x-acto blade (and scissors), ice-pic, elmers (and other glues), thick string, wax candle (used it to wax the string), thick-blunt needle, and cardboard. *for anyone trying this out for the first time - go ahead and make your life simpler by having the inserts all be the same measurements (or close to it). First there was extensive Pinterest and Google searches for DIY paper bag books, but those mostly consis...

“Good art theory must smell of the studio, although its language should differ from the household talk of painters and sculptors.” - R. Arnheim Outside facing sheets. Inside facing sheets. As of late I have been exploring layers and organic dyes. Those who have seen me work know that I love layers. I get submerged in the process of working and with each layer working through something. I have done natural prints in the past using various methods.  When I was growing-up in Cuba I remember my mom helping me pick-out colorful leaves from Croton plants and tropical flowers. We would mash these up in a mortar and add alcohol.  The resulting juice was filtered through a sheet of fibrous paper (much like a coffee filter).  As the plant juice filtered through and dried, the colors would separate into distinctive bands of color (wow, could this have been my very first mandala!).   It was only a matter of time until I ventured into natural dyes. Thats rig...