Proud member of the Tampa Bay LGBT Chamber of Commerce
Upcoming 2025 Art Therapy Workshop Schedule
Temari I: Squaring the Circle
April 26, 2025 -- 12:00-4:00 pm Cost: $80
Dive into the ancient. meditative, and beautiful art of Temari-e, Japanese embroidered thread balls as we discuss Jung's concept of "Squaring the Circle" as a part of the personal journey we all make in life. Learn to construct, mark, and embroider a simple interlocking squares design. This workshop is the first in a series, with future workshops focusing on more complex designs. This is a manually intensive workshop.
Like an Ogre, It's Got Layers: Self-Exploration with Matryoshka Dolls
May 10 and May 17, 2025 -- 12:00-4:00 pm each day Cost: $135
In this special two-day workshop series, we explore the layers of the self through the metaphor of nesting or Matryoshka Dolls. You will explore your inner layers, creating a design for each one, from outer to innermost, then execute your design on blank wooden Matryoshka Dolls with paint and markers. Sign up for both workshops if registering through Eventbrite.
Be Your Own Biggest Fan: Pride Celebration Workshop
June 7, 2025 -- 12:00-3:00 pm Cost: $80
What better way to celebrate Pride month than to remind yourself that you are your biggest fan! Paint and decorate a large fabric fan with whatever design you choose, letting your Pride and true self show for all the world to see while keeping cool in the Florida heat. A portion of all profits will be donated to LGBTQIA+ charities.
Temari II: Mums and Meditation
June 21, 2025 -- 12:00-4:00 pm Cost: $80
Take your Temari skills to the next level while coming to understand the meditative aspect of this beautiful, ancient craft. In the second workshop of our Temari series, you will learn to create a classic design, the Mum, with overlapping petals on a 16-division mari. You will soon get into a rhythm that creates a meditative flow state, keeping you present and in the now. Temari-e is a manually intensive craft and may not be suitable for those with dexterity or hand issues.
Celebrate Your Independence (from Negativity)
July 5, 2025 -- 12:00-3:00 pm Cost: $65
Create a positivity vision board in this three-hour workshop designed to celebrate your independence from negative thought patterns and self-talk. Using standard collage materials, you will design and manifest your own version of positivity as we celebrate letting go of the negative emotions, thoughts, and worries in our lives.
Temari III: Reflective Rose Garden
July 19, 2025 -- 12:00-4:00 pm Cost: $80
The rose is a symbol of elegance, love, friendship, and beauty, and in this third Temari workshop, you will construct your mari before embellishing it with a 10-division overlapping design known as the Rose Garden. Choose your colors and create an elegant beauty or a vibrant bloom as you reflect on the meaning behind your personal, hand-held rose garden. Temari-e is a manually intensive craft and may not be suitable for those with dexterity or hand issues.
The Elegance of Paper Filigree
August 2, 2025 -- 12:00-4:00 pm Cost: $90
Popular with noble and upper class ladies in the 1700s and 1800s, Paper Filigree or Quilling uses strips of paper to create three-dimensional designs on a background. Choose from a variety of kits or learn to make a monogram letter in this four-hour workshop. All supplies are included.
Dog Days of Summer Workshop
August 16, 2025 -- 12:00-3:00 pm Cost: $65
It's back-to-school time, and the Dog Days of summer are upon us. Take a break from the stress and heat and join us as we make art in the peaceful and cozy Rara Avis offices. You will have full access to all our art supplies, so what you create is up to you -- collage, painting, drawing, whatever fulfills your need to create and just get away for a few hours.
Create Your Own Dream Guardian
September 6, 2025 -- 12:00-3:00 pm Cost: $65
Dream Guardians watch over us as we sleep, but they also protect our dreams from negative outside forces. In this fun and creative, anything-goes workshop, what form will your Guardian take? Using two- and three-dimensional media, craft your Dream Guardian so it can stand between you and the world's negativity so your dreams can grow and flourish!
Fairy Boxes
September 20, 2025 -- 12:00-3:00 pm Cost: $65
A sprinkle of glitter, a mushroom house, a few bits and baubles to attract the positive energy associated with fairies and you have a fairy box. Using upcycled and recycled materials, provided by Rara Avis or bring your own, we will create small dioramas that evoke the wonder and glee of the Wee Folk.
Into the Wardrobe
October 4, 2025 -- 12:00-3:00 pm Cost: $65
In C. S. Lewis' Narnia series, the protagonists travel through a magical wardrobe into another land that seems idyllic at first. But not everything is as it seems. There is danger and war in Narnia, just as there is at home. In this workshop, we create what we might find inside our own magical wardrobe, both good and bad, and process what it means to find that the idyllic is not all that we can ask for in life.
Fall Reflection Workshop
October 18, 2025 -- 12:00-3:00 pm Cost: $65
As we enter the latter part of the year, it is easy to forget all that has come before in the year. In this workshop, we will explore the ups and downs of 2025, creating an image through collage that embodies the good, the bad, and all the rest that has made up our lives thus far this year.