Who are you?
Who are you? And who are you not? For that matter, who are you that you don’t want to be? And even better yet, what parts would you like to cultivate more?
We Ask These Questions of You and of Ourselves
We’ve been doing lots of training recently where variations of these questions have been posed. The presumption is that not only will we be raising them with our clients, but that in order to do so with any authenticity, we would first answer them for ourselves.
The Vulnerability of the True Self
Even though, because we’ve been doing this kind of identity work for most of our careers—really most of our lives–you’d think we had a resolute answer to them, but there’s always new information about “the self” to learn. And for us, this kind of work never gets old. Why? Because who we believe our “true selves” to be is so vulnerable to messages that come from the “false” sense of self.
The False Self
The “false” self–also known by other names e.g., parts, the superego, etc.–represent something other the essence of our nature at its simplest and purest. There are countless approaches that address this split between the authentic self and these “parts”, but for the sake of simplicity, we are suggest a quick exercise to access “True self”.
Accessing You
Close your eyes and pause for a moment to notice what you are experiencing in your body, in your feelings, in your mind, and through your senses (any sounds, visual information, environmental sensations like cold or warm). Do this in a relaxed way, just curiously perusing you at this moment. Even if you experience nothing, see if you can observe the flavor of that nothingness for a few moments.
Locate the Core of You
Then see if you can locate the core of who you are, your essence. It could be in your body but also elsewhere. Just sit with that sense of self and notice any qualities that it has—color, texture, weight, density, sound, etc.
Do a Piece of Artwork Representing the Core of You at This Moment
Then do a piece of artwork that represents that presence. It can be just color, line, and shape or it can be a realistic image.
Journal and Dialogue with the Image
After you have completed that, take a moment to contemplate your image. You might journal a dialogue with that part of you that showed itself in your artwork. Ask it to describe itself in terms of the visual elements it is made with and see what that tells you about your “true self.’
Art for Self-Discovery Workshops for More Dialogue with Yourself
If you are interested in using artwork to learn more about yourself, we encourage you to join our monthly “art for Self-Discovery” workshop. We demonstrate more of the dialoguing with the artwork process that helps you uncover what your artwork is revealing. We suggest that, as a result, it also helps uncover you!
Warmly, Rebecca and Gioia
Art for Discovery: How to Analyze Your Art And Learn More About Yourself”
Come to one of Rebecca’s new free workshops “Art for Self-Discovery: How to Analyze Your Art and Learn More About Yourself”. Click here for dates and instructions for accessing the workshop.