Imaginal Mindfulness in Art as Meditation and Clinical Practice (NY-RE6125)
Papers
Michael Franklin, PhD, ATR-BC
Michael A. Franklin, PhD, ATR-BC, is Chair of the Transpersonal Art Therapy program and founder of the Naropa Community Art Studio at Naropa University in Boulder Colorado. Prior to Naropa, he practiced as a clinician and directed the art therapy programs at the College of St. Teresa and Bowling Green State University. Michael is an international lecturer and has published numerous articles on various subjects including aesthetics, self-esteem, AIDs iconography, interpretive strategies, empathic methods, community-based socially engaged art therapy, Transpersonal art therapy, and contemplative approaches to clinical practice. His recent book, Art as Contemplative Practice: Expressive Pathways to the SELF, integrates his research interests in the areas of art therapy, social engagement, yoga philosophy, and meditation.
Art-based imaginal mindfulness joins meditation with visual art and Archetypal psychology. Mindfully expressing seemingly inexpressible experiences reveals how art serves as a primary form of spiritually intelligent, absorbed attention. This presentation argues that imaginal attunement qualifies as one of Gardner’s criteria for one of his multiple intelligences.