exploring creativity

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Mary and Gary Holdgrafer
Mary and Gary Holdgrafer
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Mary and Gary Holdgrafer lead workshops together in Edmonton, Alberta and at the The Haven on Gabriola Island, B.C., and are happy to travel to other locations to lead workshops.

They are also residential facilitators at the BridgePoint Center for Eating Disorders in Milden, Saskatchewan.

In addition to group workshops, Mary and Gary now also offer Creativity coaching on an individual basis. Creativity coaching can be done in face-to-face sessions or via e-mail for those who live in other locales. Read more . . .

Mary, together with her collegue Wendy Huntington, have developed the workshop "Healing Stitches - How Your Art Imitates Your Life". This workshop focuses on personal learning using different artistic modalities as a context. Gary acts as a resource for the workshop because of his interest and the knowledge he shares with Mary in the creative process.

* Periodically a 'special topics workshop' is offered here in Edmonton. We enjoyed having Eric here last year to teach his writing course. We know you won't want to miss Coaching the Artist Within. Stay tuned for more details about this exciting opportunity.

EXCITING NEWS!
Mary will once again offer her extraordinary new 'mentoring program' titled: "Seriously Creative". Beginning in September, for one weekend per month over ten months, you will journey through an intimate exploration of your art, your self and your process, with the objective of defining your personal artistic voice. Read more about this unique opportunity in the calendar below:

Please contact us if you'd like more information.


Our 2006 workshops

 
 
  Workshop title: Dates: Venue: more info
  Healing Stitches June 1 - 6, 2008 The Haven,
Gabriola Island, BC
 

'Healing Stitches - How Your Art Imitates Your Life' - personal awareness is the means to advancing creative work. Commitment to the creative process will bring feelings of fear and other sources of creative blocks to our awareness. Confronting those fears and developing strategies for moving through creative blocks in the challenging work of creating are applicable to life in general. This workshop provides a safe forum for personal exploration through a variety of creative experiences including the creation of a textile work of art.

Leaders: Mary Sullivan Holdgrafer, M.Ed., and
Wendy Huntington, M.Ed., Dip.C., Ph.D., CDS III.

  Workshop title: Dates: Venue:  
  Creative Coaching For Textile Artists January 14, 2008 - 12 weeks
Online
 

This 12-week, online course is designed for textile artists who want to stop procrastinating, become more productive, and present themselves more boldly as artists. You will learn self-coaching skills that will enable you to become more effective in all aspects of your work. You can take this training wherever you live and no special computer skills are required.

Mary is a gifted textile artist and a creativity coach. She has developed a unique way to coach textile artists that is based largely on her own development. Her 10-month course entitled “Seriously Creative” formed the basis for “Creativity Coaching for Textile Artists.”

She has trained extensively with Eric Maisel who is known to many as the founder of the discipline of creativity coaching. Mary has also studied with Nancy Crow. Both Eric and Nancy have helped Mary to hone her skills and develop her own style.

In addition to her coaching practice Mary is on the faculty of the Haven Institute for Personal and Professional Development. She also works as a facilitator at Bridgepoint Center for Eating Disorders.


Leaders: Mary Sullivan Holdgrafer, M.Ed.


  Workshop title: To be held: Venue:
  Seriously Creative
with Mary Sullivan Holdgrafer
2008 Seriously Creative,
Sept. 13 & 14,
Oct. 11 & 12,
Nov. 8 & 9,
Dec. 8 & 9
2009
Seriously Creative,
Jan. 10 & 11,
Feb. 14 & 15,
March 14 & 15,
Apr. 11 & 12,
May 9 & 10,
June 13 & 14

Edmonton, AB
 

Over ten months 'Seriously Creative' is a series of power-packed weekends of pure artistic freedom and creative exploration - aimed at taking your art and yourself more seriously. Finally, a peer-group learning environment in which you will find it easy to launch yourself into the level you long for, expressing your art as never before.

'Seriously Creative' is a mentoring program designed to take its members to the master level. With only ten people in your group, 'Seriously Creative' is intended to be an intimate exploration of your art, you and your process, with the objective of defining your personal artistic voice. If your are 'seriously creative' and like many before you, find it difficult to take your muse seriously, this is an extraordinary opportunity to fully embrace and nurture the unique views and perspectives you long to explore and express.

'Seriously Creative' is designed and led by Mary Sullivan Holdgrafer, a distinguished quilt maker and textile artist who has emerged from the craft tradition. Like you, she had to overcome the awkward feelings of accepting that her art needed to be taken seriously - first by her.

Like you possibly, Mary was a busy mother, a respected professional and a woman busily engaged with her community. Like you, she found it difficult to really know if her work had merit or her instincts were worth cultivating.

Like you, she needed to find her muse and get comfortable with all of its demands. And possibly like you, Mary eventually wanted to risk having her creativity seen, examined, judged and even bought.

Today, Mary Sullivan Holdgrafer is recognised as one of Canada's leading fabric artists. Her work has been exhibited widely and is held in public and private collections around the world. Her journey has been a wondrous series of teachers, mentors and courageous artistic exhibits, which today makes her a unique source of wisdom and know-how artistically and personally.

Members of 'Seriously Creative' will define their own focus, goals and timetable with the results being featured in a public exhibition. Each weekend will combine the personal and the professional aspects of the artists' ambitions, in a caring, supportive, expert-level environment that provides nurture and nutrition to the creative appetite.

Early Registration before June 30th Cost: $1450.00
[Please make cheque payable to Mary Holdgrafer]
(Lunches and 'coffee' included; materials not included)

Cost after June 30th: $1595.00
[Please make cheque payable to Mary Holdgrafer]
(Lunches and 'coffee' included; materials not included)

Venue: 13915 - 108 Avenue
Edmonton, Alberta. T5M 2C9. Canada.
phone: 780 452-8251

This is going to be an exciting and innovative way to explore your creativity and Mary is really looking forward to working with you!

     
To contact us if you would like to know more about our workshops, either phone us on (780)452-8251,
or email:  gary@exploringcreativity.com  or  mary@exploringcreativity.com




 
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