Karen
I am the founder of Expressive Arts NYC and a seasoned facilitator in using the arts for healing, transformation, connection, and education.
Creativity saved me.
I had stumbled through life after college, doing meaningful work and pursuing theatre (my major), but still feeling deeply unhappy and disconnected from myself. In 1996, needing a drastic change, I moved from New York to New Mexico for four years, a time I call my “soul work.” The beauty of the land and my near-daily hikes opened something inside of me. I began to make art with no worry about what it looked like. I let the process lead me. I made collages, drawings, paintings, and kept journals. I found an art therapist. I worked through The Artist’s Way. I discovered an infinite well of creativity and intuition inside of me, resources I was not even aware of. I found my voice and embraced my innate gifts. I became a more whole human being.
I now bring the power of creativity to my work in the expressive arts, leading groups, workshops, and working one-on-one. I lead with empathy and kindness, welcoming women who have never picked up a paintbrush as well as flourishing artists to this process of discovering their hidden resources and gifts.
My background is grounded in using the arts to support communities. My MFA in Drama and Theatre for Youth and Communities from UT Austin trained me to use theatre as a tool for dialogue, education, social justice, and self-empowerment. I brought this work into schools, community centers, and juvenile detention centers, and also worked with teachers to integrate drama into their classrooms. This eventually led me into museum theatre, where I collaborated on projects at the Blanton Museum of Art and the Harry Ransom Center, using performance to deepen engagement with visual art and historical artifacts.
After my first intensive training in the expressive arts in 2008, I expanded my work into a more integrated, multi-arts approach. I created women’s groups, such as Visioning Mama for new mothers, that used creative expression to explore identities and various life stages.
As Program Director at MINDPOP in Austin, I developed and led several arts-based initiatives. This included the Creative Fellowship program for high school students, which combined arts, leadership development, career training, and internships, as well as a professional development series for arts educators. Eventually, I returned to New York and continued working independently as a creativity coach and facilitator. In 2023, midway through my graduate work with The Expressive Arts Institute in San Diego, I founded Expressive Arts NYC, and since then I’ve brought intermodal arts work to individuals and groups across the city and country—in parks, homes, workshop spaces, and online.
I am thrilled to now offer my work out of Windsor Healing Arts in Windsor Terrace, Brooklyn, just a few blocks from Prospect Park. I’m excited to continue building my practice here and to bring more of the work outdoors as the seasons allow.
I live in Brooklyn with my daughter, our two cats, and a dog, along with the many dramatic sparrows who visit our backyard feeders. Lately I’ve been exploring textile arts in my own creative practice, focusing on small weavings and slow stitching.
I hold an MA in Counselor Education from NYU, an MFA in Drama and Theatre for Youth from UT Austin, and am completing coursework toward a Professional Diploma in Expressive Arts from the Expressive Arts Institute in San Diego. I also hold certificates in Creative Aging and Non-Profit Management.
www.expressiveartsnyc.com
@expressiveartsnyc on instagram
I am the founder of Expressive Arts NYC and a seasoned facilitator in using the arts for healing, transformation, connection, and education.
Creativity saved me.
I had stumbled through life after college, doing meaningful work and pursuing theatre (my major), but still feeling deeply unhappy and disconnected from myself. In 1996, needing a drastic change, I moved from New York to New Mexico for four years, a time I call my “soul work.” The beauty of the land and my near-daily hikes opened something inside of me. I began to make art with no worry about what it looked like. I let the process lead me. I made collages, drawings, paintings, and kept journals. I found an art therapist. I worked through The Artist’s Way. I discovered an infinite well of creativity and intuition inside of me, resources I was not even aware of. I found my voice and embraced my innate gifts. I became a more whole human being.
I now bring the power of creativity to my work in the expressive arts, leading groups, workshops, and working one-on-one. I lead with empathy and kindness, welcoming women who have never picked up a paintbrush as well as flourishing artists to this process of discovering their hidden resources and gifts.
My background is grounded in using the arts to support communities. My MFA in Drama and Theatre for Youth and Communities from UT Austin trained me to use theatre as a tool for dialogue, education, social justice, and self-empowerment. I brought this work into schools, community centers, and juvenile detention centers, and also worked with teachers to integrate drama into their classrooms. This eventually led me into museum theatre, where I collaborated on projects at the Blanton Museum of Art and the Harry Ransom Center, using performance to deepen engagement with visual art and historical artifacts.
After my first intensive training in the expressive arts in 2008, I expanded my work into a more integrated, multi-arts approach. I created women’s groups, such as Visioning Mama for new mothers, that used creative expression to explore identities and various life stages.
As Program Director at MINDPOP in Austin, I developed and led several arts-based initiatives. This included the Creative Fellowship program for high school students, which combined arts, leadership development, career training, and internships, as well as a professional development series for arts educators. Eventually, I returned to New York and continued working independently as a creativity coach and facilitator. In 2023, midway through my graduate work with The Expressive Arts Institute in San Diego, I founded Expressive Arts NYC, and since then I’ve brought intermodal arts work to individuals and groups across the city and country—in parks, homes, workshop spaces, and online.
I am thrilled to now offer my work out of Windsor Healing Arts in Windsor Terrace, Brooklyn, just a few blocks from Prospect Park. I’m excited to continue building my practice here and to bring more of the work outdoors as the seasons allow.
I live in Brooklyn with my daughter, our two cats, and a dog, along with the many dramatic sparrows who visit our backyard feeders. Lately I’ve been exploring textile arts in my own creative practice, focusing on small weavings and slow stitching.
I hold an MA in Counselor Education from NYU, an MFA in Drama and Theatre for Youth from UT Austin, and am completing coursework toward a Professional Diploma in Expressive Arts from the Expressive Arts Institute in San Diego. I also hold certificates in Creative Aging and Non-Profit Management.
www.expressiveartsnyc.com
@expressiveartsnyc on instagram