Elemental Expressive Arts

05/13/2026

🎨 In our most recent supervision group, we explored somatic expressive arts therapy. I introduced my new experiential, "Body as Sacred Space", pairing embodied expression with pocket Altars. We journeyed through movement & breath to turn inward.

We explored how this translates clinically, honoring Hakomi principles:
✨ Organicity: healing is within us
✨ Mindfulness: Turning within, moving from disconnection to connection
✨ Body-mind holism: The body & mind are interconnected
✨ Non-violence: Emphasizing collaboration with clients, exploring connections to treatment goals
✨ Unity: Exploring the interconnectedness of all things

A special thank you to Dr. Elizabeth Warson for facilitating the opening & closing practices, including a mediation to connect to the body & Qigong sequence to work the lived meridian.

Gratitude for Joy sharing her work on creating 3-d Altars. Inspirational!

We currently have 3 Friday cohorts running and are on a waitlist at the moment—it’s been incredible to see the interest in this work.

If you’re curious about future openings or want to learn more, feel free to reach out.

05/05/2026

Somatic expressive arts therapy: a chance to tune into the body, listen within, & find the gentle rhythms that can move us from darkness to light. The body is a sacred space. Find practices that honor the innate knowledge & intelligence of the body. Healing is within in you.

03/13/2026

🎉 The new supervision page is live on the website! Learn more about group & individual supervision opportunities.

🧭 Supervision available for art therapists (ATR), expressive arts therapists (EXAT), & Virginia LPC. Group supervision also covers registered expressive arts therapists (REAT) & Colorado LPC.

🕑 Schedule a free 15 minute consult directly from the page

Expressive arts therapy and art therapy clinical supervision. Supervision hours count towards ATR, REAT, EXAT, and Virginia LPC. Groups are also eligible for Colorado LPC. Individual supervision provided by Sarah Newton Penston. Groups co-facilitated with Dr. Elizabeth Warson.

03/10/2026

Artist: Sarah Newton Penston
Title: "Energetic Self-Portrait"
Media: Mixed Media & Collage
Dimensions: 18”x24”
Not for sale

Artist Statement
"Energetic Self-Portrait" is a mixed media and collage work that reflects an ongoing journey of self-discovery through embodied art practices. As I deepened my understanding of parts work, fragments of myself began to surface organically within my creative process—often before I had words for them. What emerged was not planned, but felt.
The piece began as a simple outline of the body, a way to map areas of chronic pain shaped by ongoing medical conditions. Initially, these sites of pain stood apart, demanding attention and disrupting balance. As layers were added, something shifted. The pain softened and became woven into the larger form—no longer an intrusion, but an integrated presence within the whole body.
Through this process, aspects of myself that had felt silenced began to appear. An inner child reached forward, seeking comfort, recognition, and voice. Each layer became an act of listening—turning inward and following bodily sensations as they guided imagery, texture, and movement. The work unfolded slowly, shaped by somatic awareness rather than conscious control.
This creating process allowed multiple parts of self to coexist, communicate, and settle into relationship with one another. The resulting portrait is not a likeness, but an energetic mapping of integration—where pain, tenderness, memory, and vitality share space without hierarchy.
Energetic Self-Portrait represents a path toward embodiment: a reclamation of the body as a site of knowing, expression, and wholeness. Through making, I found a way to inhabit myself more fully, allowing all aspects of self to be seen, felt, and held.

02/21/2026

Creative Arts Therapies Events is hosting the final weekend of the 2026 World Art Therapy Conference. The event opened with Dr. Cathy Malchiodi & features 2 days of presentations on Art Therapy & Neurodiversity. Link in comments for you to find the live stream & join us!

My presentation on creative treatment planning, using special interests with purpose will air Sunday at 2:35am & again at 2:35pm (eastern time). I walk through the components of clinical treatment planning, acknowledge the theoretical approaches & leaders in the field that have been critical to my work, & offer a few mini-experientials. If you've ever wanted to explore incorporating fandoms into therapy spaces, I touch on Lord of the Rings, Dune, Minecraft, & Zelda inspired interventions.

I'm both excited & nervous! Disclaimer from my protective parts: I caught a typo on one slide & realized I need to add a couple of full citations in my reference page that were referenced by author & date on earlier slides.

02/21/2026

The final weekend for the 2026 World Art Therapy Conference is coming up! Be sure to register to get notifications & check out the lineup of amazing presenters! It's such an honor to be included in this year's conference.

02/19/2026

📣 Big News! Summer 2026 we will be officially moving to Ringgold, VA! Ringgold is in Pittsylvania County, just outside Danville, VA. We're so excited for the move and have BIG plans for the future.

🌳 We will continue to offer virtual services, but new enrollments will shift to focus on in-person sessions, retreats, & trainings. The new location sits on approximately 88 acres of family farmland with a pasture for the horses & walking trails in the woods.

🎶 This location includes a movement/ sound room, sandtray room, art studio, meditation room, & on-site lodging for retreats. 💃

🌷 The property will be an excellent setting for nature-based expressive arts therapy. Why nature-based therapy?

"Nature-based art therapy can be beneficial in de-stigmatising ‘therapy’, creating a more accessible space for people who may find it challenging to engage in traditional therapeutic or clinical environments, and (re-)connecting people with nature. With nature as ‘co-therapist’, we can approach existential themes of impermanence, life and death, loss and new beginnings (Boon, 2019; Hermann, 2020). We may also experience personal or spiritual growth and find meaning in life that fosters change, by witnessing the beauty and awe inspired by nature (Summers & Vivian, 2018)." ~Dr Zoe Moula and Katarina Horrox (link to article in comments)

🐎 My dad has 2 horses at the property currently. We will work towards offering Equine-Assisted expressive arts therapy including proper training for the horses & myself 😆