training and labs
Play
There is something magical as an adult to find people one can play with; to feel safe enough to be fully engaged and present and embodied; to be spontaneous and improvisational; to be silly and serious; to try things out; to be surprised and to make mistakes. In the play space everything is allowed and accepted as part of the play. Being witnessed and witnessing is a key aspect when video and photographs come into the play. One can be witnessed and witness, and on viewing the videos and photos can witness oneself and make sense of the choices made and fall in love with one’s own movement as a true expression of oneself in that moment. The relationship to one’s play mates is full of sensitive attunement and stimulation for new possibilities and creative sympoeisis. When play occurs in nature all the elements of nature become partners in the play – wind, sky, clouds, trees, grass, sand, rock.
Amanda has facilitated and co-facilitated training and workshops in the creative arts therapies with many different intentions and audiences.
At present she is most interested in running experiential experimental labs for participants who are comfortable to work with movement, improvisation, performance and collaborative creativity. Participants experience the vulnerability and excitement of our individual and shared experience emerging.
upcoming event
Presencing Lab – Rongonā
Professional Development for Creative Arts Therapists
Amanda is joining with Wendy Lawson and Heleina Waimoana Dalton for an awakening to Spring multi-modal lab.
Mā te rongo ka mōhio Through sensing comes awareness
Mā te mōhio ka mārama Through awareness comes understanding
Mā te mārama ka mātau Through understanding comes knowledge
Mā te mātau ka ora. Through knowledge comes well being.
Heleina suggests that the concept of Rongonā, an experiencing verb describing all of our senses apart from the visual (which is named separately), is a profound way of coming to know. Rongonā can integrate the whole person, connecting to others, the environment and the Creative Source. It also may assist us to tune into exploring CAT ways of knowing, doing and being.
Acknowledging also Rongo – as poutiriao or guardian of peace and cultivation, which feels perfect for Spring. Wendy has explored further and discovered rongomātau, or ‘sensing the knowing’ (Dell, 2021), which fits perfectly with the explorations we are curious to share including: relational sensing; observing and feeling; resonance and conscious deliberate attunement to self, others, the arts and the environment.
In this lab, we hope to offer a space — shaped by connection, materials, and shared engagement — that can attune to your stories, alive and pulsing in your timelines, while also weaving in some of the arts-based discoveries we’ve gathered along the way, making way for whatever we might experience together. The day will be an opportunity to explore, experiment and share with peers and to extend your capacity for your own embodiment and restoration, as well as boosting your confidence and passion to extend these principles into your practice. Due to the size of the space, numbers will be limited.
Dell, K. (2021). Rongomātau – ‘sensing the knowing’: An Indigenous methodology utilising sensed knowledge from the researcher. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 20. https://doi.org/10.1177/16094069211062411
When
Saturday 13 September, 10am–4pm
Where
H&R4 Studio, Te Whare o Roto Toi/The Lake House Art Centre, 37 Fred Thomas Drive, Takapuna, Auckland
Hosts
Amanda Levey, Wendy Lawson and Heleina Waimoana Dalton
Cost
$150+gst fully earning, $120 + gst limited income, $100+gst students.
Book
Bookings are online only – apply below
About
Amanda Levey
After many years of holding the Creative Arts Therapy Programme at Whitecliffe, I now have more capacity to dive deeply into the roots of my movement-based training in my supervision and client practice. I feel inspired to share this knowledge and experience with other practitioners. I hope that participants will join me to extend our shared evolution of this work in our Aotearoa context.
Wendy Lawson
Arts therapist and artist working at the intersection of creativity, relationality, and embodied knowing. Maker, maker-with. Intentional and curious collaborator – are there eyes on our fingertips? Is the umbilicus still feeding, searching, wanting? Forever drawn to the practice of knowing – not knowing – knowing? I often feel as though I’m sensing my way through this life, leaning into the energies that surround me and emerging with a more breath-full grasp of the world’s textures.
Heleina Waimoana Dalton
mokopuna, māmā, tupuna, tauira, kaitiaki, kaituku haumanu toi
My identity is still evolving, exploring what it means to be of the Creator as a creative, resonant personage of perceptivity, connected to the collective, as embodied beings with diverse ancestral ties and spiritual origins.
What to bring
Wear layers for outdoor and indoor conditions
A yoga mat or picnic blanket
A cushion
Water bottle
Journal and simple art materials (eg oil pastels)
A readiness to be in your body and your play self