There has been a collective consciousness percolating over the decades that has made us more aware of the important role creativity plays in our emotional wellbeing and health. This has been the focus of my work for over fifteen years, and I have been using the process of intuitive painting both in my work as a professional artist and as an energy practitioner to enable clients to tap into their own creativity and to express their emotional landscapes in colour. I have been painting my own emotional landscapes for over thirty years, but the magic didn’t really start to happen until seven years in (of painting every day) when I began to realise that the whole process enabled me to channel colour and fine-tune my intuition. It heightened my awareness to a level I never knew possible and gave me a peek into expanded visions of consciousness. I share what I have learnt with clients and teach them how to paint their own emotional landscapes.
The practice uses artistic creation as a means of delving into thoughts and feelings that haven’t formed verbally. Images from the subconscious are revealed and expressed through the use of colours, shapes, patterns, symbols, and movement of marks on the canvas or paper. And through the process, we are able to release any emotional blocks. The landscapes can also tell us where we are on our souls’ life journey.
Working from the premise that we are all creative beings, the workshops I devise respond to the human need to perceive and express. Intuitive painting works in a very gentle way, and clients often don’t realise how hard they are working simply because they are painting from a place of being as opposed to doing. Something magical occurs and they begin to breathe properly whilst their innermost thoughts and feelings are expressed on the out breath!
Our verbal language can be rather inadequate in expressing our emotions, and we sometimes find ourselves trapped in memories for good or for bad. When we are caught up in either our own dramas or those of other people, perspectives need to be shifted or we remain “stuck”. As multidimensional beings of energy, every hurt or slight we feel leaves an imprint in our emotional bodies. Unresolved issues build up into trapped thought-forms and energetic patterns. Our bodies hold on to these memories or imprints unless we release them. Intuitive painting is a useful way of processing these blocked emotions or trapped memories. It is a non-invasive, non-judgemental, non-competitive process that allows us to get in touch with Spirit or The Self.
These paintings or emotional landscapes can be used to gain insight into that truthful part of our selves which has neither ego nor fear and doesn’t need logic because they come from a place of Knowing that we all have deep inside us. Each painting is a personal vision emanating from the subconscious and is revealed from the space within your energy fields where emotions are stored and from where they can be triggered and released. This is very different from a mindscape or a fantasy painting which usually involves too much “thinking” and deliberation. It is a transformational process that reveals an ever-shifting landscape from deep within. Emotional landscapes come from the place of “being” as opposed to “thinking”.
BENEFITS
The main benefits of working in this way are transformation and growth. At the very least, it’s a great stress-buster, and on deeper levels great emotional healing occurs. It can be extremely liberating leading to life-tools that can be used again and again. We become less judgmental, and more accepting of ourselves. We gain insights into our patterns of behaviour and become more mindful of our actions, discovering “gems” within and discarding those patterns that no longer serve us well. Our powers of perception and observation are heightened and this leads to greater awareness of our Selves. We can deal with niggling emotional issues and begin to embrace those parts of our Selves that we ignored or tried to dismiss. We become calmer and more serene. This is not a quick fix but gradually we return to that True part of ourselves and appreciate our own unique voices. We begin to lead more authentic lives. It’s wonderful for people who tell themselves they don’t have an artistic bone in their bodies. Being artistic is just one channel for self-expression. I work with people from all walks of life including artists who find that their self-criticism, and annihilating sense of judgement perpetuates creative blocks.
I incorporate this process into my counselling practice, along with creative journaling and writing. I currently work one-on-one with clients and will soon be running workshops for small groups with no more than six participants. Contact me for more details.
