Yvonne Lucia
Like the path of a labyrinth, my life's journey has unfolded in a circuitous pattern. Now at midlife it seems that in many ways I have "arrived back where I started from, to find that I know the place for the first time." (T.S. Eliot) There has been no linear trajectory, but rather a spiral of many transformations.
As a child, I loved to make things. In my heart and soul I knew I was an artist, but as I grew into adulthood I was urged to do something more “practical” with my life. My first career was in nursing, where I confronted the big existential questions of life regarding suffering, death, and healing. I embarked upon a quest for answers to these questions by studying theology, and received a Master of Divinity degree. I then pursued ordination with the intention of becoming a hospital chaplain, but as a Catholic woman, that door was closed to me with no apparent hope of opening. After years of struggle within “the system," I surrendered to its reality. While on a silent retreat trying to figure out what to do next with my life, I read an article about “priesthood” in indigenous cultures, where the roles of artist/priest/healer coalesced. It was an “aha” moment for me when I returned to the original call of my soul as a young child to be the artist that I always knew myself to be.
I threw caution to the wind and began making art. Family and friends began telling me “You should try to sell this stuff.” So I went the route of trying to become a commercial success as an artist. I owned and operated my own gallery in downtown Binghamton, NY for 7 years. During the course of those years, people who came into my gallery often remarked, “I wish I had your creativity.” It saddened me to hear these words, because I know that creativity is our birthright as human beings. I began teaching classes to encourage others to explore their own creativity, and in doing this I discovered my true passion. I closed my gallery in September 2006, and opened a studio in an old barn on my property.
At “The Art Barn Studio”, I invite women to experience the joy of their own creativity. Through my own experience I know that art-making and creative expression are accessible to all human beings. Engaging in creative expression is fun and relaxing, increases self-esteem, and can foster self-exploration, personal growth, and optimal well-being. The classes and workshops I offer encourage participants to work intuitively and to trust the creative process. No previous artistic skills are required. The Art Barn Studio is filled to the brim with materials awaiting playful exploration.
My personal journey with art-making has led me to a place of deep encounter, and has become a spiritual practice that is integral to my becoming.
Art as spiritual practice is rooted in a surrender of personal ego and willfulness. The person embracing the path of art relinquishes his/her desire to craft an immediate solution, and instead opens himself/herself to create the space where new and previously unconscious possibilities can arise. Expression itself is transformation; this is the message that art brings. And, as is the case with contemplation and prayer,
"If art is a spiritual path, it must lead outward from the individual listening with the body, mind, heart,
and soul into the commons, that place where we are called to serve."
"Artists can play a transformative role in society by becoming "receptors for the images the culture needs to have expressed."
- Pat Allen, Art is a Spiritual Path
The keys to using art as a spiritual practice are intentionality and witnessing. The practice of witnessing is the stance of being present to the images we create, in compassion and without judgment. We receive the images that come through us from Creative Source, and ask what is being revealed. This is a sacred process which honors silence, mystery, a stance of unknowing, and gratitude for gifts and insights received.
Engaging in creative art making, whether spontaneously, in response to a powerful dream, or in the service of attaining greater clarity around a particular issue offers me insights which I am often unable to arrive at through intellectual analysis. This process allows me time to reflect upon what has been revealed. The experience of encounter with the forms and images that arise during the creative process are profound, numinous and have at times been life-changing.
My work has evolved to encompass transformational art experiences for women in small circles, workshops and retreats. I also work with individuals by providing a sacred container for soul tending with contemplative creativity and expressive arts. Please contact me if you are interested in learning more about my offerings.
To view Yvonne's resume, click here
As a child, I loved to make things. In my heart and soul I knew I was an artist, but as I grew into adulthood I was urged to do something more “practical” with my life. My first career was in nursing, where I confronted the big existential questions of life regarding suffering, death, and healing. I embarked upon a quest for answers to these questions by studying theology, and received a Master of Divinity degree. I then pursued ordination with the intention of becoming a hospital chaplain, but as a Catholic woman, that door was closed to me with no apparent hope of opening. After years of struggle within “the system," I surrendered to its reality. While on a silent retreat trying to figure out what to do next with my life, I read an article about “priesthood” in indigenous cultures, where the roles of artist/priest/healer coalesced. It was an “aha” moment for me when I returned to the original call of my soul as a young child to be the artist that I always knew myself to be.
I threw caution to the wind and began making art. Family and friends began telling me “You should try to sell this stuff.” So I went the route of trying to become a commercial success as an artist. I owned and operated my own gallery in downtown Binghamton, NY for 7 years. During the course of those years, people who came into my gallery often remarked, “I wish I had your creativity.” It saddened me to hear these words, because I know that creativity is our birthright as human beings. I began teaching classes to encourage others to explore their own creativity, and in doing this I discovered my true passion. I closed my gallery in September 2006, and opened a studio in an old barn on my property.
At “The Art Barn Studio”, I invite women to experience the joy of their own creativity. Through my own experience I know that art-making and creative expression are accessible to all human beings. Engaging in creative expression is fun and relaxing, increases self-esteem, and can foster self-exploration, personal growth, and optimal well-being. The classes and workshops I offer encourage participants to work intuitively and to trust the creative process. No previous artistic skills are required. The Art Barn Studio is filled to the brim with materials awaiting playful exploration.
My personal journey with art-making has led me to a place of deep encounter, and has become a spiritual practice that is integral to my becoming.
Art as spiritual practice is rooted in a surrender of personal ego and willfulness. The person embracing the path of art relinquishes his/her desire to craft an immediate solution, and instead opens himself/herself to create the space where new and previously unconscious possibilities can arise. Expression itself is transformation; this is the message that art brings. And, as is the case with contemplation and prayer,
"If art is a spiritual path, it must lead outward from the individual listening with the body, mind, heart,
and soul into the commons, that place where we are called to serve."
"Artists can play a transformative role in society by becoming "receptors for the images the culture needs to have expressed."
- Pat Allen, Art is a Spiritual Path
The keys to using art as a spiritual practice are intentionality and witnessing. The practice of witnessing is the stance of being present to the images we create, in compassion and without judgment. We receive the images that come through us from Creative Source, and ask what is being revealed. This is a sacred process which honors silence, mystery, a stance of unknowing, and gratitude for gifts and insights received.
Engaging in creative art making, whether spontaneously, in response to a powerful dream, or in the service of attaining greater clarity around a particular issue offers me insights which I am often unable to arrive at through intellectual analysis. This process allows me time to reflect upon what has been revealed. The experience of encounter with the forms and images that arise during the creative process are profound, numinous and have at times been life-changing.
My work has evolved to encompass transformational art experiences for women in small circles, workshops and retreats. I also work with individuals by providing a sacred container for soul tending with contemplative creativity and expressive arts. Please contact me if you are interested in learning more about my offerings.
To view Yvonne's resume, click here
©Yvonne M. Lucia 2013. All rights reserved.