Cultivating Awareness Through Art

Discover a new path into contemplative awareness through the creation, appreciation and enjoyment of artistic expression during this interactive online class series.

Over four sessions meeting twice a week, we will use the mindful exploration of our daily lives as the inspiration of our own creative artwork through photography, drawing, and watercolor painting. Each session will explore an artistic genre – still life, portrait, landscape, and cityscape – as a metaphor for universal themes such as impermanence, compassionate action, transcendence, and collective creativity.

To inspire and cultivate the creative path of mindful well-being, each class we will begin with intention setting via inspirational texts from writers including Thich Nhat Han, Dogen, Thomas Merton, Amy Tan, Robert Frost, and others. Then we will cultivate mindful attention through guided contemplative practice. Finally, we will express our own creative experience that was born from the practice, using a choice of artistic mediums – photography, drawing, or painting.

The focus of the class is on creative expression, not artistic technique or expertise. Participants are welcome to share their works to enrich the experience of all in this supportive class community. No prior experience with photography, drawing, painting, or meditation is needed. All are welcome to fully enjoy this class!

This class will not be recorded. Attendance requirement for incentive points – at least 80% of 3 of the 4 sessions.

Request disability accommodations and access info.

Instructor: Tia Rich, PhD, is a lecturer in the Stanford School of Medicine and director of Contemplation By Design. She has been integrating breath-based self-care, mindfulness, compassion, and meditation into health and well-being programs for Stanford University since 1984.

Class details are subject to change.