Making playlists is great fun, it has art, tech, and music therapy wrapped in one. I wasn’t expecting it to have any therapeutic benefit but this topic created a specific venn diagram of music and video content that struck chords in nostalgia, self-realization, and emotional healing. Favorite tv intros are specific enough to cut the fat from popular opinion and get down to the intros that spark joy in relaxing and watching tv.

Seattle, WA

When I was 23 I was stuck in bed from Crohn’s disease. I gravitated toward passive activities such as browsing books, magazines, and photo albums and found refuge in the art of collaging. Collage is similar to meditation. I felt relaxed, restored, and rejuvenated enough to rebuild my creativity, self-expression, and imagination.

Inspired by Sage Sohier’s “Passing Time”, Hanging Out is a collection of photos about hanging out before 2020 and phone dependency.

Art of Two Germanys was the first special exhibition to go on view in LACMA’s Renzo Piano designed Broad building. At the time I interned for the education department, where I designed a gallery tour for that show. That summer I traveled to its second location, creating my first trip to Germany. I went there with research about their history and perspectives from their artists and came back with photos of my own. There are many aspects of the German culture that I would like to implement into my life and I hope to add to this photo series after each trip back.

In 2011, I took a solo train trip from Portland, Maine to Los Angeles, California. It took four days and the path went to Boston, MA, west to Chicago, IL, south to San Antonio, TX, and west to Los Angeles. Traveling can provide many wellness benefits. For me, it’s part art therapy, meditation therapy, and nature therapy. Looking back at my photos taken with my first DSLR, a Canon Rebel XSi, reminds me of how I used to capture the natural beauty around me.

Los Angeles, CA

There are a variety of colors in places of worship and can be seen as a version of color therapy. Design choices include stained glass, colored walls and fabrics, gold-plated objects, flowers, and lighting. Aside from the presence of God, gratitude, and thanksgiving, the lighting perhaps played a role in wellness, release of tension, and enlightenment.

I spent some time last season studying the beauty of sacred spaces like churches, cathedrals, monasteries, and temples. The practice of drawing helps me understand the design decisions made for spaces dedicated to the glory of God. Drawing not only strengthens these skills but creates a meditation as I zone out and simply draw.

Los Angeles, CA

The way that we want to make the expo more successful and a better place is a reflection of how we want to make the world more successful and a better place. With music, dance, art, and dog therapy, the good vibes just keep on coming.

Los Angeles, CA

I tried to capture what it’s like working in an environment that uses energy, meditation, and art therapy to showcase my kind of fab therapy. Here’s a little about the 2024 Conscious Life Expo pre-production and first day in the Signage Department.

Forks, WA
With a population of 3,828, Forks, Washington could use a regional airport but designed for its own pace. With a Wabi-Sabi Americana moodboard, I designed a simple warehouse frame and a curvy path for the drop-off experience. The final project is presented in a poem tour with allegorical characters discussing the interior architecture’s potential.

Seattle, WA

Re-barre is an architecture project for the Seattle Waterfront. Its exterior draws graceful arch inspiration from local landmarks and its interior is designed to uplift low-income communities through programs in lit and dance therapy. Inspired by Pongo, the poetry program for at-risk teens, the writing center helps individuals express their emotions. In conjunction, the dance studio stands as a beacon for communities to congregate at the waterfront’s crown jewel that represents Emerald City.

Los Angeles, CA
The Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc) Spring Show feels like an art show with an underlining analytical social commentary on our built environment. With Bachelor, Master, and Post Doctorate programs in Architecture and related specialties, SCI-Arc injects a requirement for creative problem-solving on space use, new tech construction methods, and elaborate building and presentation concepts. The outcomes present a well-rounded, cultured, and dedicated direction for human innovation.

Malibu, CA
The Getty Villa is a little oasis off of PCH. It’s like an experiential museum, modeled after an ancient Roman villa, lined with manicured gardens, reflecting ponds, and collections of antiquities.

Living in a city that supports the arts is an important aspect to see the benefits of arts in education. Madrid is a wonderfully creative city, rich in museums, murals, and bookstores dedicated to philosophy, women’s studies, or graphic novels. I befriended many artists, architects, writers, filmmakers, and dance therapists and learned how to teach self-confidence through art.

With production roles as producer, production designer, and camera assistant, set photography is another way to capture the beauty of the art behind the scenes.

Los Angeles, CA
Art displayed in a spacious environment can cleanse your spirit from the mundane and groom your float for a journey rich in expression and grounded in dignified energy.