DRAWING INTO TRAUMA
ART EMBODYING A FELT SENSE OF HEALING
The Drawing into Trauma Art Series visually portrays a healing of old trauma stored in the body. I draw beyond the edge of what is known, and the art exposes unexpected elements of my inner landscape. This work is intended to be felt into and received, each piece embodying a felt sense from when it was made. The “sentient” images function as empathic medicine, reflecting back an unfolding process of healing. They validate and make visible that which is internal and unseen. The authentic visual nourishment of the artwork fulfills an unspoken hunger, and it feels inexplicably good to simply take it in. Then, living with the work over time, facilitates the development and integration of latent portions of self, which the art represents. The symbolic suggestive imagery lends itself to a range of interpretations, allowing anyone moved by a drawing, to derive personal meaning and therapeutic benefit from it.
We all have sequestered parts of ourselves that long to be acknowledged, made visible and whole. I draw from underlying feelings of distress, and the emotionally charged mark making allows imagery to surface directly from the unconscious. Drawing into what is not yet known requires courage and an acceptance of failure. When beginning with tumultuous random scribbling, it can be hard to fathom that the chaotic mess will gel into anything intelligible. The rational mind has a difficult time trusting this process, as it exists outside of its conscious domain. I draw through the mind’s skepticism and follow instinctive feelings, first just sensing, and then later looking for what wants to be drawn out. Despite the doubts and fear, something astute and unexpected always emerges.
This art serves as visual communication, reconnecting disowned and abandoned parts of the self, like a type of soul retrieval or shadow work. Over the course of the series, these subconscious parts have revealed themselves and their evolution, through evocative imagery emanating palpable feeling. I do not plan or intend any of it. Only in retrospect, do I see that the work has been revealing insightful motifs, and articulating distinct phases of healing. Some of the art appears unsophisticated, even childlike. It represents undeveloped, immature parts of the self. With healing, this humble innocence opens pathways into numinous mystery and delight of life.
In the beginning, the drawings depict wounds, most of which are composed of unresolved space. I am unsure how to resolve the wounds visually on the paper and emotionally in my body. Yet slowly, and in tandem, both art and body evolve and transform. Like a visual diary, the artwork captures each small step of transformation and healing. Although I did a bit of therapeutic art when younger, I did not dedicate myself to it, and remained unaware of my inner life’s longing to express herself. She languished unknown and unseen for a long time. Finally, at long last, I learned the value of tenderly caring for and reviving the neglected parts of a self. Although it may be arduous work, in time, exploration into an inner life engenders wonder, fulfillment, and a felt sense of wholeness. I hope this art inspires others to nourish that which lies latent within. Especially during these turbulent times, our collective healing rests upon nurturing the forsaken. In each of us, there lies dormant, a vast unexplored wilderness of potential.
