While art is a therapy in its own right, you can also use the benefits of art to express your creative side, to reduce stress and get in touch with your innermost feelings. I think most of us knew this instinctively as kids. Virtually all of us know the joys of sculpting something (with play dough), painting something (with fingers), or drawing (with crayons and other materials). However, other than making random doodles in the margins of a page while you're killing time, if you're like most adults, you don't express yourself with art like you did as a kid.
One of the reasons that art is effective in a therapeutic manner is that the act of drawing and creating art can help you relieve stress by distracting you from you every day tensions. There is also a certain quality of being, called "flow", that experts say is very beneficial for us. "Flow", refers to a state of being, completely engaged in something to the point of being in a near meditative state and it carries many of the same benefits of meditation. Also the act of having a hobby, setting aside that special time just for yourself, can make you feel more balanced in your lifestyle. With all of life's responsibilities, we forget that we need and deserve 'down time' which is self care.
A gentle introduction to the creative processes that art can bring to individuals wanting to enter the world of self expression and self realization will be offered on Tuesday afternoons, 1:00 to 3:30 PM, weekly, at the Ethel Hart Center, 915 - 27th Street. A nominal fee of $25.00 per lesson will be charged. Your instructor, Reif Erickson, will generously provide all the pastels and paper for the first class. New students are welcome at any time and if you already have supplies or an easel, bring them to the class. A supply list will be given for the four step process of creating pastel lanscapes. And keep in mind, no prior experience is necessary for this class as you will let your artistry evolve from your unconscious and record your journey to an imaginative world and back again.
If you can hold a crayon, you can learn to create beauty from these pure pastel colors and the well of creativity within yourself that is rejuvenating to both body and soul. Come and amaze yourself. Class size is limited. For more information call 916 808-5462.
Ethel Hart Center
915 - 27th Street
Sacramento, CA 95816
916 808-5462