Art Workshops

Angel Gifts give Hope to others

These ceramic angels will remind you how your gift is impacting the lives of those suffering from domestic violence and giving them dreams, hope, and healing!  We want all families to live in peace and have hope.  At Artesia Healing Arts we offer workshops that transform broken hearts into processing the various emotions that come up in d. v.  These angels help us keep providing expressive art workshops to women or children that can not afford classes.  We will have them online as well as for sale at the VC Collective in the Pacific View Mall in Ventura in space #2167 (by Sears on the second Level)  

They make great gifts, buy them for you and your loved ones!

How AWBW expressive art workshops helped this teen

Mutilated teen tennis shoe

This was an A Window Between Worlds (AWBW) art workshop "Take a Walk in My Shoes".  This yellow tennis shoe came from a young teen crying out for help- she mutilated her self and yet no one seemed to notice or care about her pain. No one heard her screams, no one noticed the injuries.  She found a voice in this piece telling what she experienced at the hands of her father.  She said "NO!" but it still continued.  Will anyone step in to help her?  She was calling out loudly. . .  Thank God, Michele Foster heard and spent time loving her acknowledging the pain and trying to help her choose a different path away from a painful parent.  Through the expressive art workshops this teen stopped mutilating herself and found ways to safely deal with the pain and to trust again.  She also was able to move out and not live under the roof of an abusive father.  There are others out there not knowing if there is hope or that they are worth being loved, they cry out but who hears?

Our goal this year is to get into high schools and let them know we care.  

We want teens who are beginning dating to recognize signals of an abusive dating relationship.  We want to present our public service announcements and make them aware that abusive relationships do NOT improve on their own. They have power to change. But where will these teens go? Can you help us?  Will you reach out and love these teens who need someone to say they are special and abuse is wrong?  Will you help us sponsor a speaking engagement at a local school?  Or do you know of a high school or middle school that needs to address this issue?

Contact us at ARTesiaHealingArts.org

Domestic Violence is everyone's business!

 

AWBW Training

AWBW Training


In June, I was given the opportunity to go through the  A Window Between Worlds (AWBW) Leadership Training.  It was 3 days of getting hands on experience what it would be like to be a participant as well as a leader in facilitating art workshops.  AWBW is a non-profit group that uses art as a healing tool for women and children affected by domestic violence. AWBW and its staff is like a warm fuzzy blanket and a cup of hot cocoa on a cold breezy night.  The staff are welcoming, supportive, encouraging and always listening to hear the heart of any speaker.  
Even though I was coming in as a leader, I was surprised at the depth of emotions that came out both in myself and the other future leaders.  As I allowed myself the freedom to just be and enjoy the process, something new always popped up.  The art may not have been "beautiful" but it was always reflective of the process of letting go or setting the intention for the future. It just shows that there is always something inside of us that needs a voice so that who we can walk in who we really were created to be.  
I came out with more insight to affirm the participant and the process they undergo than to affirm the art.  Its not the beautiful art that is truly beautiful but the heart that can express itself without judgement, criticism or negativity.  There is healing in our acceptance of whatever emotion we feel.