Guided art reflections are excellent for helping to process one's life experiences. As I work with women who have little to no experience in mixed media art/reflection (not a "normal thing" to have experience with!!), it has been challenging to break the process into small "layering" steps. It is very counter-intuitive to "cover up" an art something (or even a written word) that is on a lower/first layer. It is only when I break the steps down, ideally with pictures, that it becomes more manageable and understandable.
The example here shows multiple layers of art which began with a written first layer reflecting how the immigrant seeking asylum in the US had embodied courage during her pre/journey. You can see a little bit of the words still visible in the upper left corner in the pink area. As she gradually built the layers with symbols of hope for her future, the story of her past becomes absorbed through art into the hope she is expressing for her new future. She gave her piece a title for the "top layer" of Dios es Amor (God is Love) and also wrote her hopes and prayer for the future on the bottom left.
The art reflection was inspired by the Biblical text, Isaiah 43:1-5 which talks about God calling people from the north and south and east and west and gathering them together to worship God who is the creator of all people. This text then is included in the art piece (I provided the printed words on the peach paper which are evident here on the top left of the art). First-timers at layered art always find it strange to "cover up" the words they have just written with a big piece of anything, such as this scripture. However, as they move to the second and third and even fourth layer during the art process they begin to experience the value of the guided art reflection. Novices always seen quite surprised at how much they like their completed piece!
