Articles & Blogs

Jun 26 2018

Secrets and False Selves

 Searching for the 'Real You' “…false You’s - the imitative You, the too-clever You, the Avoiding You - and (how to) settle into that (sometimes, at first, disappointing) beast, Real You. Real You is all you have, and all other paths are false. And in the best case, Real You is so happy to finally be recognized, it rewards you with Originality…” George Saunders, Writer Have you ever wished you could be someone else? Or felt a disconnect between how you feel inside versus how you are perceived? I certainly have, and work with many people who grapple with who ...
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Jun 15 2018

My Teaching Tour in Seoul, South Korea

I was fortunate to be invited to teach and train professionals in Seoul, South Korea this spring. I spent two weeks in the heart of Seoul getting to know the culture and the dedicated people who live and work there. My host was Jung Myung Lee, the director of Tamalpa South Korea, a branch of Tamalpa Institute in Marin County, a movement based expressive arts therapy training program. Jung Myung organized my teaching work in the training programs at Tamalpa South Korea, with a psychiatric group, offering an inservice to staff at a trauma center, and facilitating a 3 day public workshop to professionals. My teaching in South Korea was focused on the big issues of addiction, ...
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Mar 16 2018

Fall in Love with…Art

My  love letter to ART: Art is my deepest love, a love that never fades or abandons. Art is always there for me. Art makes me feel alive, sexy, and deeply nourished.When I engage in art making I fall in love again and again. I fall in love with the people I create with, my collaborators, my film subjects, my co-teachers, my students, and the environments where art is formed. ART continues to amaze and surprise me. I hold my breath with anticipation and imagine what else ART will offer me this year. With unwavering commitment to the creative process, Adriana Published: February 14, 2018
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Nov 27 2017

Women Artists Speak, What Matters Today?

"I don’t think about myself as a woman when I set out to make art. I do, however, want to see myself, and the issues I care about reflected in my artwork.”  - Soad Kader, Woman of Color Visual Artist How is it to live as a woman today? And to be a woman artist specifically? These are questions I’ve been sitting with in response to the #metoo campaign and the opening of Pandora’s box in politics, the comedy world and Hollywood. It is a time to speak up about harassment and injustice towards women, and people are paying attention. ...
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Jul 18 2017

Those Hiding Places

“Sometimes you hear a voice through the door calling you, as a fish out of water hears the waves…Come back. Come back. This turning toward what you deeply love saves you.” - Rumi   Today I am in a vividly beautiful natural environment at my main venue for teaching in Marin County, California. I am amongst the redwoods and the warm sunshine supporting a group of students to explore the creative process through various modes of art-making. Even though I am working, I have space to breathe and feel myself nourished in body and spirit. In this moment, I feel ...
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May 10 2017

Artist or Therapist? My Dilemma

Sometimes being an arts therapist doesn’t feel very cool. The label of therapist can make me feel uninteresting and irrelevant. It can feel like wearing a conservative outfit, being invisible and blending into the background. Sometimes in social settings I have seen people get nervous around me when I identify as a ‘therapist’. I’m guessing that they think I might be analyzing them or reading their insides. Or they might start opening up about their deep pain and struggles imagining I will take some of the burden away. Either way, my impulse is to take up less space. When I ...
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Apr 5 2017

The Amazing Art of Storytelling

“After nourishment, shelter and companionship, stories are the thing we need most in the world.” - Philip Pulman, writer The stories that inspire me the most are non-fictional stories, stories that are about real life and real people. These kind of true stories are the most compelling to me when they incorporate emotion, vulnerability, unexpected twists and elements of change and rebirth. Basically, I’m a sucker for stories that show how people survived difficulty and got to the other side. This interest in truth telling brought me to the work of expressive arts therapy and education. It was an invitation to ...
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Mar 1 2017

The Revolutionary Nature of Art

  "Art is the bridge when walls of fear keep us insulated and reactive. A society loses meaning, purpose and direction without it" - performance artist Karen Finlay It is a very complicated time. The predominant emotions I encounter around me are grief, anger, hopelessness and bewilderment. I often experience uncertainty in regards to supporting people in response to the politics we are facing. There isn't a rulebook, it is one of those moments that challenges us because we are in new territory here in America. It is a waking up process as many people understand more clearly the tensions and biases that exist with race, gender, class and sexual orientation. There is resistance ...
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Dec 19 2016

My Artist Story, In Recovery Magazine

The Creative Source: An Artistic Life Shaped by Recovery by Adriana Marchione Published through In Recovery Magazine, Winter 2016, (link no longer active) I am an artist and a person in recovery; this statement illustrates how I define myself and shape my world. When I got sober in 1993, I found it absolutely necessary to connect with people in recovery who could show me a new way of life. However, the artistic resources and mentorship necessary for me to maintain my creative life and artistic integrity were missing. I have had to find my own way in unearthing artistic expression ...
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Nov 30 2016

Seeking Sanity: A Recovery Perspective

     I have been sitting on this blog for a little while. I would say it has been slowly forming since 11/9/16. My thoughts and emotions have been heightened along with a good majority of people in the world. I have bounced from fear, confusion, sadness, outrage, shame, concern and ambivalence to a feeling of trust and ease. Then I’ve bounced all around again multiple times. We are all being bombarded with facts, ideas, perspectives and opinions. In the midst of this, it is hard to know what is real. It has prompted me to take some time to ...
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