HYDERABAD: “Now, what I want you all to do is, draw your inner mask and outer mask,” instructs Vasavi Eriki as we grab our A4 sheets in unison and curiously look at the unknown faces on our screens at ‘Explore, Express and Heal’, an online art therapy workshop organised by Pause for Perspective. And Vasavi, an expressive art therapy practitioner and group facilitator, knows her art right from the start.
She first tells us to take slow, deep breaths. Sure, this is something we aren’t new to but sometimes, we need someone to remind us to just pause. And Vasavi holds space for us, easing us into what is going to be a deeply reflective workshop.
And no, you don’t have to be Picasso or Van Gogh to practice art therapy for yourself. All you need is an open mind to get in touch with your own emotions.
“The inner mask is more authentic, a side of you that you may not necessarily share with the outside world. The external mask is more about external expectations, how you want to be perceived by others,” explains Vasavi before telling us to draw these two masks.
When someone says ‘mask’, what do we think about? Perhaps the black and white twin masks popularised by theatre. But Vasavi says that our inner masks and outer masks don’t need to look like ‘masks’. “The shape, size, and colours are all up to you.
You can draw them side by side or on separate sheets. Your mask, your choice,” explains Vasavi. Over the next 20 minutes, we sit in front of our screens and just quietly draw and colour our masks—oval, circular, abstract, stick figures and whatnot. Vasavi also asks us to ‘journal’, which means to jot down words or phrases that we associate with either of the masks. “Now, notice any emotions that come up while you are drawing and be aware of the feeling,” she says.
The beauty of this art therapy workshop is how flexible it really is. It isn’t like a lesson at school where you have to sit through no matter what. “At any point of time, if you want to take five minutes for yourself and come back, it is completely okay,” reassures Vasavi.
After we are done with the exercise, Vasavi asks us if we are comfortable opening up about our masks to the others. One by one, we hold up our art and express ourselves. The themes that pop up are all too familiar. Family pressures, work pressures, stress, anxiety, self-doubt...we really are exploring, expressing and healing, all at the same time. We don’t hold back tears; Vasavi encourages us to let them flow.
Manasi, an attendee, shares that art was not something her family encouraged. She adds, “I used to feel so lost. Talk therapy didn’t help so much. Art therapy helped me access some hidden issues. I really felt my emotions during the mask exercise and was aware of my breathing. This was a new experience for me.”
Ramya, another attendee, says, “Vasavi really held space for me, allowing me to be vulnerable. The technique was very useful and eased a lot of the inner turmoil.”
A dancer since she was little, Vasavi has had a long relationship with art. “After I had an experience with art therapy which brought out a lot of emotions for me, I decided to start facilitating. I feel fulfilled holding space for people.”
In a world where we stumble and race towards the doors of success every single day, art therapy reminds us to slow down, explore, express and heal.