Artists & Vulnerability
Artists and Vulnerability
While I am happy to work with a variety of individuals, some of whom may not identify with being a creative, I specialize in helping artists thrive as they move from one project to another or from one creative period to the next one.
In part, I do this work because I have been an artist throughout my life, and I have the lived experience of understanding the ebbs and flows of a creative life.
I also believe that everyone has the innate potential to create, whether in making forms of art in a traditional sense, or in curating a life that aligns with their own personal style, aesthetics, comfort and values. You may not have ever considered yourself creative, but if not, I would love to spend a session with you. At times the sense of ownership, power, and self-expression that underlies the creative process can seem at odds with our present levels of functioning or the currents of societal issues that surround us. However, it’s just at these times that I feel we may uncover a deep calling to unearth what means most to us.
Creating asks of us a vulnerability that we may not always be prepared to put forward. However, so does the therapeutic process. I find that creativity and therapy go hand in hand. Even clients who have generally felt reluctance toward formal types of self-expression tell me that they find new opportunities manifesting around them after several sessions. When we discover their motivations and clarify their desires, suddenly a clearer picture of life and the self appear. Individuals rediscover, or discover for the first time, a sense of agency. They are able to reflect to me the source of particular barriers to their personal power that came to develop over time. It may be trauma, family dysfunction, personal fears or anxieties, physical or emotional sensations that have interfered with healthy self-development. These unique circumstances can be better understood through therapy, as can an understanding of what each individual would like to do with the new knowledge of themselves and their circumstances. Excavating one’s own wishes for life, whether long-held or newly found, is an exciting first step in laying out a path forward in the next chapter ahead. Suddenly, you hold a key to creating that you never imagined.
For those who already identify as an artist or a creative, this process of self-examination and reflection may be innate and an integral part of one’s work. Or, it may be something that has been repressed or buried for a myriad of reasons. Having a safe space to uncover and process vulnerable experiences is critical. In many creative industries, we are asked to “go there” emotionally to places of trauma or pain, to source expression for reasons of performance or profit. It is often widely preached or even expected that we “dig deep” as actors, dancers, musicians, visual artists, to access depths of feeling and then be left with nowhere to process those. This is unfair to humans creating the art, and dishonoring of our needs as a holistic individual. Even artists who, for example, choose Method acting as a modality, need a counterbalance to the intensity of embodying a character so deeply that the physical being holds the weight of another personality for extended periods of time. Our bodies have difficulty discerning what is “real” versus what is “fake” or “play” when our senses are activated. In addition, our emotional state may linger, causing disruptions in “real life” after the art activity or performance has ended.
For these reasons and more, my passion continues to be holding space for individuals on any part of a creative journey. I believe in the power that creativity gives to us as well as the power that we, conversely, give back to it when we are in a healthy state. As a professional, I pledge to always be a safe person to seek at any point in this process, and a soft place for you to land with your most vulnerable experiences.
