Dharma Art Retreat

“First thought best thought”

A week of exploring the connection between meditation and your creative potential in order to discover your own authentic voice and unique gifts of expression.
Based on the teachings of the Tibetan Buddhist master Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche this programme will include parts of the Shambhala Art curriculum.

The view of this retreat is that, "How we express ourselves is our meditation practice". There is no separation between art and the rest of our life, or meditation and the rest of our life.

It is how we create ourselves and our world each moment and that concerns everything we do.
What is special about the Shambhala Art teachings is that it is such an intimate way to work on ourselves and to discover the potential for expression that is already within us. Everyone has a magic seed of inspiration and creativity that can be awakened and nourished, and developed. 

During this programme we will work with the teachings from the first three parts of the Shambhala Art curriculum: "Coming to Your Senses", "Sign and Symbol", and "Space, Form, and Energy".
There will be exercises using a variety of techniques involving body, speech, and mind. The exercises are challenging, enriching, and fun. Many of them are "on the spot" which help to go beyond hesitancy, self-criticism, and doubt.

No previous training is necessary. The only pre-requisite is a sense of curiosity.

About Shambhala Art

Shambhala Art is art that springs from the meditative state of mind. As a process, it brings wakefulness and awareness to the creative and viewing processes through the integration of contemplation and meditation. It is based on a collection of teachings by Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche that appreciate the uniqueness of everyday sensory experience, the art of everyday life.

Shambhala Art does not teach a particular skill or technique such as painting, sculpture, or dance. It is about the source of inspiration, its manifestation, and how it speaks to us. Seeing the simplicity of things as they are provides the ground for genuine creative expression.

Teacher Herbert Elsky about the Retreat: “For me the essence of art is discovery and appreciation of the senses. I like the sense of aliveness and being in the moment, in the unknown, even if it is uncomfortable. You never know what you might discover!” Read more here.

Find out more about Shambhala Art here.

Without seeing things as they are, it is hard to create art. Our perceptions are obscured and our mind is not fresh, so making art becomes a troubled, futile process by which we're trying to create something based on concept.

-- Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche

This retreat will be taught in French. English translation available upon request.