Trauma & The Art of Healing Workshop Series

https://www.facebook.com/events/317497525335021/EVENT DESCRIPTION:

Survivors of violence and trauma are left with wounds, hurt, and pain. We carry the scars with us wherever we go. How can we work toward healing and caring for our selves?

Facilitated by lee & Pragya, “Trauma & The Art of Healing” is a 4-week workshop for self-identified, Black, Indigenous, Mixed-Ancestry, and People of Colour communities who have experienced trauma. Topics covered will include a brief overview of the biology of trauma, the science of art therapy, and an in-depth exploration of art as a mode of healing. Participants will engage with art-making and art practices toward creating a mixed-media “map” of our healing journeys.

NOTE: The workshop series is taking place over 4 Mondays in a row. We highly encourage all participants to attend all 4 sessions, as this will allow for deeper engagement with the work, as well as will allow for more time to develop the final art piece. However, we recognize that some folks won’t be able to attend all of the sessions. That’s okay! You’re still welcome to attend as many of the sessions are you’re able to – we would love to have you there. 🙂

ABOUT THE FACILITATORS:

Pragya (MSW, RSW) is a fat, brown, queer, femme with a South Asian body and Prairie heart. She is experienced in working alongside survivors of trauma and those struggling with mental health via public education, crisis intervention, and counselling. Her work is informed by feminist, anti-oppressive principles which guide her narrative and somatic-based approach. Above all, she offers warmth, compassion, witnessing, and gentle invitations to peace and self-love.

lee (uses they/them/theirs pronouns) is a mixed race, queer, trans, interdisciplinary artist and facilitator. they have been grappling with, healing from, making art about, and organizing around sexualized violence and trauma since their teens. they are currently building love projects like ShapeShift Arts (www.shapeshiftarts.com), Kalik (www.kalik.org), and faciliting arts-based workshops towards social/political/healing change.

ACCESSIBILITY INFO:

ASL interpretation has been booked for this series of workshops. Please register by May 18th at noon to confirm your attendance. If no confirmations are received by the deadline, ASL interpretation will be cancelled.

The event space is wheelchair/scooter accessible with access to an accessible washroom nearby.

A gender-neutral washroom is available just down the hall and around the corner from the event space.

In order to enable people to attend without experiencing hardship, bus tickets and money for dependent care (this can include childcare, eldercare, etc.) are available upon request. Please email admin@sfpirg.ca with inquiries.

While we cannot ensure a fully scent-free event in this setting, we’re aiming to create a scent-reduced environment by not bringing additional scents into the space. Exposure to laundry products, colognes, hairspray, and many other scented products can trigger serious health reactions in individuals with asthma, allergies, migraines, and/or chemical sensitivities. We ask that you not wear/ apply/ or bring any scented products into this space. If you do so, we may need to ask you to leave so others can safely stay in the space. If you find yourself being impacted by someone’s use of scented products during the conference, speak with any one of the organizers. We know that this can be a big step for many people. As Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha says in Fragrance Free Femme of Colour Realness, “Cutting out scents may seem like a pain in the ass, but it means that awesome, ass-kicking community members you love can attend events you’re at and make out with you without having seizures, throwing up or otherwise getting really sick.” Please, bring your amazing self, and keep the scents at home!
(More info here: http://thinkbeforeyoustink.com/howtogofragrancefree.html,http://www.brownstargirl.org/blog/fragrance-free-femme-of-colour-realness-draft-15, http://eastbaymeditation.org/accessibility/scentfree.html)

The event is nut-free and peanut-free. Absolutely no nuts or peanuts will be permitted within the event space in order to create an allergen-free environment for all participants. This includes (but is not limited to) products like hazelnuts, cashews, almonds, coconuts, walnuts, coconut oil, coconut milk, and peanut butter.

If you have any other allergies or sensitivities that we need to know about so that you can participate fully and safely, please let us know atadmin@sfpirg.ca.

Some folks are sensitive and/or get sick from electromagnetic frequency radiation (EMF). This can include radiation from cell phones, Wi-Fi, fluorescent lights, and more. SFU Burnaby has Wi-Fi set up throughout its campus, including in the event space. In order to reduce EMF exposure, we will strive to minimize fluorescent light usage and utilize natural lighting whenever possible.

If there is any other way we can make this event more accessible for you, please let us know at info@sfpirg.ca!