Healing Art
Sharon Barbour shares her art inspired by the healing that comes from brokenness. You can view or purchase the pieces she offers by visiting her Etsy store. Use the code AHEALING15 at checkout to recieve 15% off your order.
A healed heart can be even more beautiful than one which has never been broken...
The ancient Japanese art of Kintsugi entails repairing broken pottery with gold or silver lacquer. From as far back as the 15th century, this artistic medium has been a powerful metaphor for the philosophy of Wabi Sabi: embracing imperfections as beautiful. It carries the understanding that when things have been painful or even destructive in our lives, we can heal afterward. Our hearts and lives may become more beautiful after the self-care work we do, not in spite of the breaks but because of them.
In Sanskrit, Anahata means unhurt, unstruck, and unbeaten. It is associated with the heart chakra and also related to the heartbeat, unbroken rhythm, and soundless sound. In my own life, I have experienced trauma and heartbreak. However, I am on a journey of healing for my heart, and I now claim it as unbroken.
Alchemy is a term from the Medieval era, when certain practitioners attempted to utilize their understanding of chemistry to turn lead and other base metals into gold. While their research did not yield what they had hoped, the term Alchemy has become synonymous with things transmuting from one state to another in a mysterious, seemingly magical way.
As a trauma-focused therapist, I have been privileged to work with and witness clients who have been through unimaginable pain, yet they have transformed their own hearts into beautiful pieces of art. It is my hope that these pieces I have made will represent these incredible types of transformations for you.
You are beautiful. You are one of a kind. You are a masterpiece.
—Sharon Barbour