“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…

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…

“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…

  “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…

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An Artistic Life Shaped by Recovery by Adriana Marchione Published through In Recovery Magazine, Winter 2016, (link no longer active) I am an artist and a person in recovery; this statement illustrates how I define myself and shape my world.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…

  Sometimes life brings incredible surprises. I got a phone call several weeks ago from Janet Hopkins who is the editor of ‘In Recovery‘ magazine asking if I could come to Phoenix, Arizona this November to receive an award. I wholeheartedly said, ‘YES!’ and will be heading down to the In Recovery Gala on November…

‘Art is the only way to run away without leaving home.’ -Twyla Tharp Today, I am reflecting on ‘the art space’. After many years in my work as teacher, expressive arts therapist and interdisciplinary artist, I am still so struck by the powerful space that is created when we engage in art-making. This past weekend…

This quote by Samuel Becket has been surfacing lately, “Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try Again. Fail again. Fail better.” This quote was first shared with me by my mentor and friend Stephen K. Levine during a time when I was feeling especially discouraged about my work. These days I am used to regular visits from doubt…

  Notes from a Crowdfunding Campaign… I recently completed a crowdfunding campaign for my a documentary film project I’m working on called The Creative High focused on artists who have faced addiction. It was a 30 day campaign that required me to embark on a virtual search for donations from friends, family, colleagues and strangers willing…

“I measure every grief I meet With analytic eyes; I wonder if it weighs like mine, Or has an easier size.” -Emily Dickinson Over the last several years I have been learning about grief through the language of the arts. This is a language that doesn’t require learning a pattern of speech but instead demands…