Try one of these transformational courses

Color archetypes is a spiritual-artistic method to identify and understand the source of energies available to us from the day we were born – core energy, connection energy, and spiritual energy.

These three energies, inherent parts of us, navigate and shape our lives. Understanding them will help us live better, happier, and more fulfilling lives.

mindful art is an art practice that helps us relax and get into a mindfulness state when we are creating. It’s not about the outcome; it’s about the process of using materials and expressing ourselves.

We use lots of mindful art activities and exercises in the visual journal that promote happiness and joy. The visual journal is a safe space for creating, it encourages feelings of gratitude, self-acceptance, and empowerment.

In my method SoulPages I discovered that it is possible to meditate throughout the seven elements: Intention, magical coincidence, background, color, line, image, and text.

If you take each of the elements and concentrate on it, you can achieve a state of relaxation and transformation.

If you want to learn more about the 7 elements you can join this free course

The red violin

mindful art and the seven elements

if you take any of the seven elements, you can create endless mindful art activities that will help you transform your life.

• Intention activity– close your eyes and scan your body, now take a pen and just draw the shape of your body and fill it with different colors according to your sensations.
• Magical coincidence activity-pick up leaves that you found on the street or when you walk in nature and start painting on them with posca markers
• Background activity-use the gelly plate to create a mystical uncontrollable background
• Color activity– draw a painting with only the 3 basic colors-blue, red, yellow.
• Line activity– doodle for 15 minutes with only one pen. just move your hand on the page to create lines. we also call this activity- mark-making
• Text activity– write whatever comes into your mind for 10 minutes. If you don’t have any ideas- write- I don’t have any ideas…over and over again.

SoulPages method is all about creating a practice of mindful art

I developed SoulPages method to encourage people to discover their hidden inner artist that wants to create for the sake of playing, discovering, and also achieving meditative states.

In SoulPages we learn to trust the process and befriend our inner critic.

when our inner critic is resting, we can enter into a state of flow and reach levels of consciousness that are hidden.

Through SoulPages journaling we can connect with our unconscious and discover so many treasures.

The SoulPages facilitator course allows you to become your own facilitator, you could learn valuable lessons on how to create mindfully in your journal.

To learn more about SoulPages Facilitator course press here

SoulPages Mentor Training 22-23

mindful doodling

mindful doodling is a meditative technique to help us connect inward and focus on the present moment.

I use mindful doodling exercises to help my students slow down, calm themselves, and be more present.

In SoulPages journaling method, doodling, which in its essence is a repetitive line, is one of the essential layers of every visual journaling spread.

When we were children, we all used to doodle in boring classes, or when we spoke on the phone, we used to let our hands guide us and create doodles.

When we let our hand lead us without thinking- our mind feels free, and then- our subconscious comes out to play.

Our lives can change dramatically when our subconscious starts “talking” to us.

If you want to learn more you can read about doodling in my book “Layers of Meaning” by Rakefet Hadar.

Mindful doodling- everyone can do it.

To start a practice of mindful doodling, all we have to do is take a black pen and white paper, sit in a quiet place, and just “ let the line go on a walk.”

• focus on your breath and at the same time continue to move your end on the paper
• try to feel- what are the sensation when I’m creating this line?
• Change the shape of your lines, create close shapes vs. open shapes.
• Fill closed shapes with more patterns.
• Let though that occurs in your mind be translated into lines and shapes.
• If you feel the inner critic inside- translate his thoughts into lines and doodles.
• Try to doodle for at least 10 minutes.
• If your inner world is full of thoughts- write a word that summarizes the thought and let it go.

How can you transform your doodles into art?

In SoulPages journaling method, you work with the seven elements of visual journaling. Doodling, in its essence, is a line element.

You can use your mindful doodling exercises as background layers to your spread.

You can also work on the watercolor background and follow the color with doodling.

art and mindfulness

Creating art in your visual journal is a way to combine two fantastic healing fields- art and mindfulness.

Mindfulness is considered to be one of the most healing meditation techniques out there-when you learn to focus on the present moment; you connect with your true inner self.

This is what art journaling is all about!- connecting with our inner true self in a nonjudgmental, accepting way.

What really heals?

That’s a question that I’ve always asked myself.

When I started visual journaling, I was in one of the most challenging periods of my life. My mother was dying of cancer, and I knew her days were numbered. I sat by her side or in the hospital hallways and found some small escape for my soul in the pages of the journal. Through the colors, lines, and images, I managed to connect with myself and express some of the pain within me that had no other way of expression.

This practice that I did daily for a whole year felt like meditation, I was so invested in this art and mindfulness practice that I was able to heal myself from all the guilt and shame I experienced in my relationships with my mother.

art and mindfulness- how can you adopt a daily practice?

• create a small art and mindfulness meditation journal with card stock or watercolor paper
• decide on one medium: watercolor, felt pens, colored pencils, and for a whole month draw every day a small painting in your journal.
• when you start painting try to concentrate on the colors and lines and not on the outcome.
• Ask your inner critic, to go for a walk!
• When you finish painting you can close your eyes and meditate on the images that emerge.
• You can dialogue with your images in various imagination techniques such as shamanic journeying or the healing story technique.
• In our visual journal, we discover new art and mindfulness meditation methods.

The SoulPages Method

SoulPages method is based on creating art and using meditative techniques to get insights about ourselves. this is a very transformative process.

In the SoulPages facilitator course, you can learn how to combine art techniques with meditative practices such as guided imagination, shamanic journeying, and voice dialogue.

Try one of these transformational courses

Color archetypes is a spiritual-artistic method to identify and understand the source of energies available to us from the day we were born – core energy, connection energy, and spiritual energy.

These three energies, inherent parts of us, navigate and shape our lives. Understanding them will help us live better, happier, and more fulfilling lives.

In my method SoulPages, I use lots of exercises that I call Meditation art. These exercises create a meditative state of mind and allow inner development, feeling calm and happy.

Jung, the great psychiatrist, painted mandalas to practice inner peace and feel whole. He spoke about art as being meditative and creating states of flow when time passes, and we experience happiness and a unique feeling of connectedness to our hidden self.

When art therapy as a movement started in the ’70s, one of the ideas was to use art activities to release content from the unconscious to the conscious and create insights through using material and techniques in a free, nonjudgmental way.

Meditation art is one step farther; it means that you can meditate while you are creating in your visual journals.

All you have to do is use the seven elements of visual journaling separately and keep on creating in a repetitive motion without planning or having any desire for a particular outcome.

If you want to learn more of the Seven elements, you can do this free workshop.

The basics of Meditation art

• Create with only one material at a time.
• Use repetitive patterns and techniques.
• Don’t think! let your hand guides you
• Don’t expect a beautiful outcome- it’s all about the process.
• Notice your breath while you create.
• If you feel judgmental or bored, stop and look at what you have created.
• Use the elements separately (color, line, image, text) to create layers.

How to start meditating in your visual journal?

The most common meditating activity is doodling.

To try doodling, you need a page with any colored background and a black or white thin pen.

Now follow the patterns that the blots of color created and mark them.

Don’t think. Just let your hand create small doodles; they don’t have to mean anything now; keep doodling until you feel it’s enough.

You can also try this free tutorial in my blog-its all about creating a state of relaxation with only felt pens and a black pen.

RELAXING WITH COLOR

In my SoulPages Facilitator course, you can create lessons with meditation art activities.

In this intense and developmental course, you could start to understand how our minds work together with artistic elements to release difficult emotions and promote happiness and health.

meditation spiritual art

Meditation spiritual art is a form of art practice that involves meditation practice such as mindfulness and aims for spiritual development.

Since art therapy started to develop in the ’60s, it was accepted that art-making could contribute to mental and physical health.

It is also known that meditation as a regular habit is a significant positive force that enhances our life and creates well-being.

And lastly, spiritual art-making was always an essential part of lots of tribal communities worldwide.

In Color Archetypes, I created a powerful method of artistic expression that incorporates meditation, mantra making, and spiritual development with colors and images.

meditation spiritual art- what are the benefits?

• A daily meditation spiritual art practice will promote your health and well-being.
• You can create unique simple art that reflects your inner world
• Get powerful insights from your art that can improve your life.
• Learn how to articulate mantras that can transform and heal your life
• connect with your individual color map.
• Enjoy the different energies and healing that colors bring to your life.
• Learn how to use art mantras as a regular habit that will change your life.

The connection between Color, meditation, and the spiritual path

There are many theories that link our complex soul to theories of color.

Our aura colors, chakra colors, Native American color wheel and more are all an attempt to express the richness and complexity of our soul.

Our soul is like a beautiful diamond which is made up of several components, these components can be called energies and any such energy can be seen in a particular color so that we can understand how these energies work together to allow our soul to be expressed in the world.

 The three energies that make up our soul are the core energy, the other energy, and the spiritual energy.

In Color Archetypes,I chose to use the language of colors to describe the energies that make up our souls.

The three basic colors – red, blue, yellow – make up all the colors in the universe, and respectively – the three basic energies of the soul can create an infinity of possibilities in our lives.

To express the energies of the soul – I chose to attach one basic color to each energy. The uniqueness of the “Color Archetypes” method compared to other methods of color healing is the ability of each one to arrange for himself the color map according to his intuitive and personal connection to the primary colors.

Meditation art therapy

Meditation art therapy is a set of art journaling visual exercises that are meditative and allow for healing.

Everyone can do meditation art therapy simple exercises. However, it is proven that a regular routine of working in our art journal can contribute to our daily well-being and happiness.

I have worked as an art therapist since 2012, and I was always fascinated by how meditative art exercises contribute to my client’s health. This is why I decided to develop my method of visual journaling for adults called SoulPages.

SoulPages method is built on seven elements: Intention, Magical coincidence, Background, line, color, image, and text.

Some of the elements like line and text are very meditative.

For example- doodling is a technique of meditation art therapy; when you doodle around the watercolor background, you start to experience meditative states.

If you want to watch a short tutorial about doodling, you can find it here

https://soul-pages.com/relaxing-with-color/

Meditation art- a self-care therapy

These are a few suggestions for meditation art therapy activities

The basics of Meditation art with the line element

•    Create with only one tool at a time( marker, pencil).
•    Use repetitive lines.
•   Draw until you fill-up the page with shapes.
•     Don’t think! let your hand guides you
•   Try different kinds of lines- closed, open, dash lines, etc
•    Don’t expect a beautiful outcome-its all about the process.
•     Notice your breath while you create.
•    If you feel judgmental or bored, stop looking at what you have created and write the words that come to your mind
• After you fill up the page- you can color it any way you want.

Winnicott and the squiggle game

Donald Winnicott, a well-known children psychiatrist,  used to play with his patients the squiggle game. He used to divide the page into six parts, and he would start with asking his clients to do a quick squiggle- then he would continue the squiggle into an image and give it a name.

After that, they switched roles, Winnicote would draw a squiggle, and his client would turn it into an image.

In the end, they would create a story of all six squiggle images that they created together.

Usually, the story was a metaphoric story that was very relevant to the client’s life.

This activity was very meditative and therapeutic.

I was influenced by Winnicott to create a process for the SoulPages facilitator’s course.

In this process, you create a journal cover that is full of line meditative exercises.

If you want to learn a new exciting profession and become a SoulPages facilitator you can read about the training here

https://soul-pages.com/courses/soulpages-facilitator-training-22-23/

This training aims to create professional facilitators that can help people grow and transform with the tool of the visual journal and the seven elements.

 Five days of art recipe bites

there are numerous ways to start a visual journaling daily practice so in order to help you get started –I am really happy to share with you these fun exercises of visual journaling.

There are really simple materials and techniques in these bites!

Looking forward to see your art work in my Facebook group

 Visual journaling with rakefet hadar

Color Archetype and the theory of soul energy

There are many theories that link our complex soul to theories of color.

Our aura colors, chakra colors, Native American color wheel and more are all an attempt to express the richness and complexity of our soul.

Our soul is like a beautiful diamond which is made up of several components, these components can be called energies and any such energy can be seen in a particular color so that we can understand how these energies work together to allow our soul to be expressed in the world.

The three energies that make up our soul are the core energy, the other energy, and the spiritual energy.

In Color Archetypes, I chose to use the language of colors to describe the energies that make up our souls.

The three basic colors – red, blue, yellow – make up all the colors in the universe, and respectively – the three basic energies of the soul can create an infinity of possibilities in our lives.

To express the energies of the soul – I chose to attach one basic color to each energy. The uniqueness of the “Color Archetypes” method compared to other methods of color healing is the ability of each one to arrange for himself the color map according to his intuitive and personal connection to the primary colors.

Creating our first color map

We are going to create a personal color map that is based on our current situation in life.

But before we start, I want to explain, In short, my theory about energies and color.

As you all know and feel, our world is composed of energies..

Feelings are energies

Actions are energies.

Connections with others have energies.

Through shamanic studies,  I discovered that there are three main energy modes

The core energy mode

 The other energy mode

The spiritual energy mode  

Every day we move from one mode of energy to the others- lots of times every day.

We feel a special kind of energy when we are with our family or friends, interacting, talking..this is the other energy mode.

And then we are on our own, thinking, creating, listening to music, etc.. this is the core energy.

Finally, when we meditate or walk in nature, we can access the spiritual energy, which is a different light energy.

Some people feel it when they are connecting with art or literature, some when praying to god…but everyone has a spiritual side, even if you are not religious.

You probably ask- what is the connection between energies and colors? Good question!

Our subconscious translates energies to colors.

Our subconscious feels with colors..

What is especially beautiful about colors is that they have energy in them, each color affects us, but we are not quite sure how; we feel something when we see colors.

So now we are going to create our first map of color/energies.

 SoulPages & the seven elements….

In 2014, with the help of my long-time student Rakefet Berger, I opened the Creative Journeys School. I wanted to share the joy of creating that I had discovered within me. It took me a year to develop dozens of fascinating lessons on the visual journal. From the moment I opened my first group and until today, five years later, I’m surprised to discover again and again the magic that happens when people meet the visual journal for the first time.

Teaching or facilitating visual journaling is not like teaching a regular art course – it’s a field that touches the soul and walks the fine line between therapy and art. That’s why it became necessary to hold special training sessions for visual journaling instructors. And so, the SoulPages method came to be, a method that integrates a powerful tool together with processes that enable transformation and healing.

In 2016, I opened the training program for Facilitators through “SoulPages” method. I wanted to establish a special course in Israel for professionals who facilitate groups and inner processes, to master the artistic language of the visual journal.

In 2021 I opened the 1st international SoulPages Facilitator course which is running now with 16 amazing women from all around the world.( In March 22 the 2nd i will start registration for the 2nd SoulPages facilitator course)

The “SoulPages”  method is based on three pillars – a deep understanding of the elements of visual journaling; the ability to integrate those elements to create experiential processes; and connecting to our unconscious mind as we use the language of metaphors and symbols. In this post i want to demonstrate the 2 main elements, the parents of the elements: Intention and magical coincidence.

The element of Intention

Intention is the heart of the artistic process, and it plays an especially important role in the visual journal. The primary intention of all visual journal spreads is to connect to the soul, and the desire to express all of its parts without being bound to rules of beauty and aesthetics.

Every spread of the journal starts with intention or desire to express something. Sometimes, the intention is clear to us right at the start, and sometimes we start creating intuitively and discover the intention deep into the process.

The natural way for me to create is to start intuitively, and through the process to discover the intention of that person within me – the “dream child”. Creating is the way to communicate with the higher parts of me; it is the only way that it can communicate with me, through lines and colors and the magical mix of the seven elements.

So for me, intention comes from my unconscious mind, from the higher, hidden parts of myself. At a certain point, usually when I add a few layers to the page, I start to understand the message, and then I connect with what has emerged from the spread and continue to create with intention.

Intention is like a cloud that always hovers over us when we work on our visual journal. The higher intention is to express ourselves in a new language, a visual language that touches us, a language that lets us create something from nothing. That is the higher intention of every spread in the journal.

The element of Magical coincidence

If the element of intention is the father of all elements, magical coincidence is the mother. To feel a sense of freedom and inner passion as you create in your journal, you have to love and accept the surprise that magical coincidence offers. Looking at the world through the eyes of a child lets us discover wondrous ways of creating, ways that we wouldn’t have discovered otherwise.

Our inner dream child dearly loves magical coincidence; it knows “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!” and there’s nothing it likes better than to wander around in new places and get to know them. It loves to gather inspiration as she wanders, and then make unique connections, to create in a way that only she can.

If we can connect to that part inside us, our world will grow and expand and we will feel connected to a new and exciting world of inspiration. Sometimes the feeling is like a curtain opening, suddenly seeing the world differently, from the eyes of the dream child who looks for magical coincidence everywhere she goes.

Magical coincidence is expressed in every stage of creativity:

• Techniques that bring results we have no control over
• Create without judgment and let your heart and hands lead the creation process
• Gather inspiration from the world and use it in visual journaling
• Use your imagination and play with the techniques and materials
• Accept that the creative journey is setting out on a new path – some parts of it may not be pretty, but the process is what’s important, and not necessarily the final product.

The mixed media language that we use in the visual journal opens the doors to many fascinating combinations of techniques that are sometimes unexpected, but the results lead each person in the right direction. I call these techniques magical coincidence, because they enable our inner dream child to get excited and keep going.

There are many techniques of magical coincidence, and even more that you can discover.

How it all started….

When I just started with art journaling 7 years ago I use to buy so may stencils and I was using them as a background layer…but after a while I started to doodle my own symbols and I looked for stencils of small houses but I couldn’t find any…

so imagine how happy I was when Stencil Girl asked me to produce my houses into stencils. I was thrilled and immediately started to sketch them.

And after just a few weeks they already sent me the samples that i’m so thrilled to show here!

We (StencilGirk and myself)  decided to launch them as a set that called “the inner dream houses” I feel this set represents all my ideas about the inner dreaming child that longs for a home and is very busy searching new dream territories.

• The Tree & Houses stencils (Sideways Tree Branch L849)

The Tree & houses was inspired by the connection between people to nature.

The tree is a portal to many parallel inner worlds.

The stencil was design to allow multiple focal points . you can use parts of it from any direction or you can you all of it as a whole.

There are lots of symbols that I use in my work- the clusters of houses, the tree, the sun and moon and the small figures.

You can stamp parts of the stencil and continue the inner story in your own way.

The stencil can be used with India ink, acrylic, embossing, distress ink , tombow markers, watercolors and Gelly plate

• • The Eye& Houses stencil (Eye L848)

  The eye & Houses stencil by Rakefet Hadar was inspired by her love to the symbols of the inner eye and the inner house that represent the ongoing search for wholeness.

  This stencil is designed as a mandala of houses and around a big Eye..you can use it as a whole or use houses clusters as a way to enrich your mix media layers.

  You can also use just half of the stencils and create a focal point of an urban surrounding.

  This stencil can be used with India ink, acrylic, embossing, distress ink , tombow markers, watercolors and Gelly plate

  They are great for doodling because you can stamp parts of the stencil and continue it in your own way.

what is my way?

How to use the Inner dream house Tree stencils

Materials I used in this tutorial 

watercolors

watercolor paper

Gold acrylic

black/blue Pilot

Pink/black Permanent ink

 Images you love

Tombow markers

Glue

How to use the Inner dream house Eye stencil

Materials I used in this tutorial 

watercolors

watercolor paper

Distress Oxide ink pads

black/blue Pilot

Pink/black Permanent ink

 Images you love

Tissue paper

Jell pens

Glue

Acrylic on black….

Materials I used  

black paper, Gold acrylic ( Abstract), Golden Teal acrylic, Permanent rose writing ink