Tuesday Slice: Finding myself through a new art form

Have you ever participated in a SoulCollage® session? 

I had been waiting for years for the right time to attend the introductory course, and it finally arrived this past Saturday.  Six hours have never passed so swiftly; one session, and I am hooked.

My very first card!

We met at Seton Cove, a spirituality center located in the heart of Austin, Texas.  Eleven women from several nearby towns and cities gathered around tables, which had been pushed together to form one big workspace, led by a trained SoulCollage® facilitator who was also a Seton Cove faculty member. We listened to music, chose images from an assortment on the table and introduced ourselves through those images.  

The facilitator taught us the basics of SoulCollage®--the history of its founder, Seena Frost; the purpose and uses of SoulCollage® card making; the four suits in which cards can be categorized.*** 

Second creation

We were then left to our own devices, encouraged to find images that spoke to us among the many containers our facilitator had provided.  Words were not to be used, as they could be limiting when reading our cards.  All the supplies we needed were also provided; we simply had to find images, cut away, and create our cards.  There were no requirements as to how many we had to create.

After lunch, we listened to a recorded meditation by Seena, and then made a card in response.  We read these cards by filling in a poem template, and could share if we wished.

Inspired by meditation

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Time and space to be creative has been lacking in my life for the last few years, and I found this experience freeing and insightful.  I am a person of words, and thinking through images was new and exciting--even though I found myself qualifying through words in my head as I searched for pictures.  I also think I was subconsciously preparing for this class many years ago, when I started a box of clipart back in my greeting-card-making days that I just couldn't let go. Time to blow the dust off the box and create!  I've already ordered supplies to make more SoulCollage® cards, enjoying this avenue to discover more about myself through art.

***Disclaimer: "SoulCollage® cards are not to be sold, traded, or bartered; they are to be reproduced only for the personal use of the maker of the card. SoulCollage® cards may be shared as examples to illustrate the SoulCollage® process, but it is a principle of SoulCollage® that SoulCollage® cards are not for sale, trade, or barter." [from “The Principles of SoulCollage®]

Cards created by Chris Margocs for personal use.