2021: Maintaining Hope in the Year(s) of Living Dangerously -Wes Chester, MA CAGS- Director, Expressive Arts Institute
January 1st, 2021 As I look back across the nearly six decades of my life, I can never remember a time when I felt so circumspect about wishing everyone “Happy” New Year’s. It seems almost wrong. I don't want to put pressure on people right now to feel "happy." So many are grieving the loss of jobs, homes, family
So, You Want to Become an Expressive Arts Therapist? – with Judith Greer Essex Ph.D.
I can’t blame you. For 40 years I have had the best seat in the house. I witness people unfold, come alive again, heal and grow through the arts. It’s the most satisfying job in the world. Helping people by making art and making a difference, what could be better than that? What is Expressive Arts Therapy? Expressive Arts Therapy
Goddess Wisdom for Today’s Woman: Embracing your inner goddess to empower your life. An Interview with Dr. Judith Greer Essex: -Wes Chester, MA, CAGS, Director, Expressive Arts Institute
Why the goddess workshop? Why now? I have done workshops concerning the images and myths of ancient goddesses for many years. Feminine psychology interests me, naturally, and I am at heart an artist, guided by images. I stopped about 20 years ago when I began the bigger work of founding the Expressive Arts institute. Since the last
Schools in Session: What will you learn this fall?
The start of the school year comes at a celebratory time in the cycle of the year. Summer is waning, and we may be feeling rested from vacation downtime. The work in the field to move us towards harvest is nearly completed. It is in this time that the internal work of planting new ideas, nurturing continuing
Recovering the Artist: the 8th annual show at the Swift Shines a light on Recovery.
How did the Artist get lost? In life, most of us eventually face events that require a kind of absolute change in the nature of how we live, or think about life. But the loss of the artist is usually cultural. We have forgotten the time before diagnosis and drug therapy, and the reductionist labeling of
Love= Friendship = Love
-Judith Greer Essex, Ph.D., Director, Expressive Arts Institute Who is Your Valentine? The history of St. Valentine's Day is a messy mix of pagan and Christian celebrations. The old pagan festival of Lupercalia (which fell on February 15th) was a precursor and celebrated Faunus, the god of agriculture with animal sacrifice and blood rituals. The Christian Saint Valentine
Songs of Freedom: A Two Day Song Writing Workshop
Instructors Wes Chester and Carrie Herbert invite you to free your voice and sing your song. I think that most people have unexpressed songs inside them, things that need to be given voice, whether it be personal or political.yet relatively few people write their own music. Many people believe songwriting is too difficult to imagine doing it themselves, or
Our Intro Course is a Journey to the Heart of the Arts.
If this is your year to consider a career in the expressive arts, this course is your first step. At this time of year, Judith and I return from summer teaching in Switzerland, to plan the year ahead for San Diego Students. One of our great duties is offering an introductory course. The intro course is always a wonderful experience,
Deep Play Summer Workshop Series begins July 2018
Summer is when our collective schedules take a breath, and make room for play. Making a collage brings a wonderful child-like mood, working with scissors and glue and finding the right place for each image. It's summertime, time for a break from the hectic days of September through June, time to play. Play can, of course, can mean many