Art Therapy & the Queen

If I had to name the 5 things I am most passionate about they would be: family, food, photography, developing faith in God, and art as therapy. It is the latter that I will focus on in this post. I have a degree in Social Work and in addition to my photography clients, I also work for an arts-based therapy agency in Huntington Beach. I have always been intrigued by human behavior and the healing power of creative expression.

This year for my birthday I went with some of my family to a wonderfully whimsical sculpture garden in Escondido called Queen Califia's Magical Circle. It was brought into being by the artist Nikki St. de Phalle. A docent at the garden told me that St. de Phalle taught herself to make art after experiencing a nervous breakdown. She had had an extremely traumatic childhood. Her first works had a forlorn aesthetic, but as time passed, (and I imagine as she healed), she incorporated more color and the characters she created became more playful. This sculpture garden was the last major work of her career. She died in 2002 before its opening.

I am fascinated by artists who leave behind beautiful public works for the world to enjoy long after they have passed; artists like Noah Purifoy, Simon Rodia, Veijo Rönkkönen, Robert Smithson, and Leonard Knight. James Turrell, who is still living, has made a number of public works and is currently carving out his magnum opus: the Roden Crater. It is awesome to add a woman to this list.

Queen Califa’s Magical Circle is the embodiment of emotional transformation through art. This was the first time in years that I’ve taken photos with the intention of connecting with myself rather than a client. It was my own kind of mini healing experience within a much larger undertaking of the same nature. My cousin Becca even snapped a photo for me to commemorate my birthday weekend. I loved every moment. xoxo

My favorite image from the day! ;-v

There she is! Queen Califa!