Meet Amy Thompson a 2014 graduate of our Certificate Training Program. We are excited to feature her as our monthly Alumni Spotlight! We think you will be inspired by her work as an Artist, Social Worker and Expressive Arts Facilitator! |
Amy Thompson, MSW, PVW Artist, Social Worker & Expressive Arts Facilitator Alamoosook Lake - Orland, Maine |
Amy Thompson is an artist, gardener, photographer, social worker, and expressive arts facilitator. She began her career as a childcare worker (houseparent) to 14 neglected and abused teenage girls in a residential setting. Following a move from the Buffalo area to
Connecticut, she spent the next 9 years as a caseworker fielding suicide calls and assisting clientele with locating needed community resources. In 1983 she graduated from the University of Connecticut School of Social Work (MSW) with a major in group work and a minor in women’s studies, which led to several years as a Medical Social Worker at Mt Sinai Outpatient Medical Services in Hartford CT. A move to Maine resulted in a career change as well as the opportunity to facilitate a support group
for women who identified as adult children of alcoholics. Amy graduated from Expressive Arts Florida Institute in 2014 and offers expressive arts classes as a volunteer in her community. She engages in numerous expressive arts offerings through EAFI and IEATA as part of her personal expressive arts practice. |
Amy, what drew you to the field of Expressive Arts, or motivated you to get Expressive Arts training? |
I grew up in a family of accomplished working artists…parents, sister, aunt, uncle and cousin, and was not seriously open to exploring my own interest in art until 1993 after two decades as a social worker. I had shied away from any hidden proclivities as a “creative.” The idea of “competing”
in my talented family was just too daunting. In the late 80’s I joined a women’s group, Adult Kindergarten, which offered me the opportunity to freely play with art materials, explore personal growth exercises and delve into the question of “who am I?”. I stumbled into expressive arts without knowing it. It spurred me onto new adventures. I drove a wedge into that solid resistance and began studying watercolor, immersing myself in classes and selling my art, eventually being juried into
the Potomac Valley Watercolorists (PVW) in VA. Despite my modest success, I continued to be challenged by old beliefs that I was not good enough and not a “real artist.” My highly talented father was not tactful in his critiques, and it wasn’t until I enrolled in my first class at Ringling School of Art and Design in 2009 that I was ready to challenge my lack of confidence in myself and in my creativity. I weave together my love of the natural world through my art and gardening. My watercolors bring joy in from my garden and community to be appreciated year-round. I join my group work experience with my love of art as an expressive arts facilitator. My groups "Art From the Heart....for the Soul" provide an opportunity to explore
one's innate ability to be creative and discover new pathways to the soul. |
As you began to immerse yourself in this work, were there any unexpected gifts or surprises? |
My greatest surprise and gift came upon signing up for Art and Healing at Ringling, offered by Kathleen Horne and Victoria Domenichello-Anderson. My intention was to explore the personal childhood wounds that surrounded my “artmaking”. I was unaware that others were taking the course for professional development. I felt a serious trembling when I recognized that I had just happened upon something much larger than my intention; something that would
change the trajectory of my life forever! I could combine art and social work! The onus of creating a painting that was “good enough” in the eyes of others was finally confronted and gently transformed. I met my inner critic head on. My images spoke to me, surprised me, challenged me and at times turned my world upside down. There was no direction to go, but forward. I had found my niche. |
I learned to trust myself and to trust the process and for the first time in my life felt like I was in the right place at the right time. I discovered a safe “home” in the language of expressive arts. It’s as though I had discovered my native tongue. I found my voices: my emotional, feeling voice, my movement and percussive voice, my shy voice and my confident one. I found my listening and my spiritual voice. Affirmations and challenges were flowing from my pen,
and I claimed the many faces of my creativity. My, yet undiagnosed ADHD and learning disabilities were unpacked. I had always felt like I was following the beat of a different drummer but now I honor and follow that beat. |
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Hurry Up and Wait vs. Twisted Sister |
For several years I spent a portion of the winter in Florida helping my elderly father; taking classes at Ringling and then EAFI. I walked the beach daily gathering flotsam and jetsam to create images on "My Healing Wall” at the far end of Lido Beach and was dubbed “The Wall Lady”. It evolved into a daily spiritual practice, and I was delighted to find that it spoke to and inspired others to participate in our informal, ever-changing sacred space. We, who were
otherwise strangers and often never met, recognized a universal, unspoken language. My mandalas often honored a loved one who had died or was ill. Many images evolved from simple joyful play. I told the story of the images to those who stopped to look and often a special shell in hand was left as a token to be added. These images were vulnerable to the weather or a disgruntled observer. I would then wipe the slate clean and begin again. I have no healing wall upon which I create here in Maine,
but for many years have walked through a beautiful seaside cemetery and informally adopted a headstone in the shape of an artist’s palette. I have fewer visitors there, but the ritual continues. |
My internship placement in 2013 reconnected me with the Unitarian Universalist community that I had known years before. It has been an ideal venue for classes that I offer. My social work background, my faith community and expressive arts pursuits all share common values and support my core beliefs. I credit these influences for helping me to navigate on this wisdom journey and trust their guidance. |
How are you currently implementing expressive arts in your personal and/or professional life?
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expressive arts practice is a trusted companion, forever opening me to new insights. My visual imagery often precedes my conscious awareness, and my writing seemingly flows from the unknown. The mystery asks for and receives my trust. When face to face with my growing edge I am learning to relinquish control and call
upon spirit. Rich revelations emerge in the dream group I attend. We employ simple psychodrama techniques to explore the characters from our dream lives. We embody their stories. I sit in amazement at how quickly emotions and clarity emerge in this safe trusted space. The natural world has always been my trusted companion and my teacher. Its patterns, cycles, and symbols are my lessons. I turn to the natural world for comfort and its symbolism instructs and is manifested in my imagery and paintings. It soothes and brings joy. I am a lover of the natural world, a student of its lessons, a gardener of my soul and of my beloved gardens. |
The
mandorla has been a source for deep exploration over the years. The dialogues that emerge are some of my most profound writing. They offer me the opportunity to re-write old stories, to transform and reintegrate. Through this process, I claim the “power” within rather than surrender to old hurtful beliefs. Sometimes I think of myself as referee upon witnessing my internal “tension of the opposites”. My narrowed lens opens to respect, acknowledgment, and a sense of gratitude. It is quite freeing
and confirming to learn that I can hold powerful opposites simultaneously. The shy fearful me is also brave! Through my expressive arts work I have befriended the ADHD part of me and am most grateful for all the spontaneous mini adventures that my ADHD invites me on. She is forever in need of “reigning in”, AND she leads me on amazing discoveries. |
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I'm OK (Companion Piece to Baptism of Fire) |
I took up the unanticipated challenge of focusing my studies, however, on facilitator training, marrying it with my groupwork background. I offer Art from the Heart…For the Soul series and numerous standalone workshops. I happily volunteer my services in the community and in collaboration with a friend and talented sound healer, have offered our class, “Art from the Heart and Sound for the Soul.” It is always a joy and gift to witness others as they
open to their creativity. |
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Ink and String - Affinity Exercise |
Art from the Heart and Sound from the Soul |
What is your current personal practice and how does it enrich your life? |
I participate in the many rich programs that EAFI offers online. The opportunity to stay involved from my home in Maine has been a gift beyond measure. COVID and health issues have kept me from traveling and the world comes to me through IEATA offerings and conferences. I have participated in Open Studio Online through EAFI since its inception during the pandemic and have made lovely friendships with many that I’ve never met in person! The expressive arts web is a
vast and supportive network that enriches my life and expands my horizons. It offers me an opportunity to both give and receive, to feel a part of belonging to something larger than my small world. My creativity is intertwined with my ever-evolving spiritual self. Having passed the ¾ century milestone, I have become much
more aware of the tangible and intangible.
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Gratitude What do you wish you could tell the world about Expressive Arts? The ever-expanding expressive arts web throughout the world is a light that shines itself through the power of compassion, love, justice seeking, deep commitment and the removal of systemic barriers.
Thank you, Kathleen Horne and Tamara Knapp for your invaluable support and guidance these many
years. Your vision is a gift to all who have touched your world, and the gift continues to multiply exponentially. What are you currently offering, and what are the ways that people can work with you? I loosely manage an informal Facebook page that includes samplings of my formal art and expressive arts images. Amy Thompson Art and Healing |
Watch for our Alumni Spotlight on the 15th of each month. We feature graduates of our Certificate Training Program - Expressive Arts Facilitators, Therapists, and Educators. We hope this series will inspire you, help spread the work of our alumni, and demonstrate the scope of
practice of the expressive arts field. To see past Alumni Spotlight features & our Alumni Directory visit the link below. www.expressiveartsflorida.com/art-professional-links For more information about our Certificate Training Program, Professional Development, and Workshops - both online and in-person,
visit us at www.expressiveartsflorida.com Tamara Teeter Knapp MA, Registered Mental Health Counselor Intern, REACE® Kathleen Horne MA, LMHC(S), REACE®, REAT® |
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