Frida Mirror

A highly individualized journey for those who want to begin or deepen their practice of self discovery and creativity

Frida MirrorFrida Mirror:
through Frida's powerful reflection,
come find yourself

e-course with Maya Gonzalez

Frida has become a beloved window into the human heart: her life, her art, her self. She invites us into a deep and familiar place. The Frida Mirror holds the potential to highlight internal, often nonverbal experiences in a powerful and simple way.
Frida Mirror

What does becoming yourself really mean?
What doors would open if you owned your power?

In this course, you have the opportunity take full advantage of Frida’s depth and use it as a jump off point into the tradition of using art as a tool of self knowledge. Frida’s image becomes the window into your own heart as you learn the power of looking into the eyes of another and finding yourself. Throughout the course, Frida's image is used as the foundation of your own self- portrait. Her face serves as the perfect reflection for you to see your self as deeply as she saw herself opening up avenues of self expression, self awareness and reclamation.

Here's a sample video from the Frida Mirror Course:

Access this course and more with Classroom Registration Frida Mirror  offers a 7 week/session format focusing on

Radical Self LoveRadical Self Love
Beliefs & IntentionBeliefs & Intention
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Frida Mirror is a full course that arose from a simple project I have done over the last 10 years with children and adults alike with surprisingly powerful results. It's artist-sourced, 1000’s of kids-tested, and 100’s of grownups-tested.

It is a highly individualized journey unique to each person, this kind of creativity heals. It opens our minds. Makes us more of who we are. Invites us to be part of all that is. This is the power of creativity.

More about the course materials and their intention:

affirmationsIn Lak’ech

Tú eres mi otro yo / You are my other me.
Si te hago daño a ti / If I do harm to you,
Me hago daño a mí mismo / I do harm to myself.
Si te amo y respeto / If I love and respect you,
Me amo y respeto yo / I love and respect myself.
Mayan inspired poem, “Pensamiento Serpentino”
Luis Valdez (1971)

Frida Flower by Maya Gonzalez

Video Explorations of Frida's Life & Art Video Explorations of Frida's Life & Art
to REFLECT on how her life & lessons mirror your own
Like the video above, I'll take you on a visual and auditory journey as it relates to each session's focus. You'll learn more about Frida, her life and her art.
Self-Portrait Art Projects Self-Portrait Art Projects
to GUIDE you into using art as a tool to know more about yourself.
Using Frida's image as a base, I'll model the project for each session in video format allowing you to witness both the act of making art as well as how I use the project to explore more about myself and my life lessons.
Journal Prompts & Meditations Journal Prompts & Meditations
to INVITE further exploration of each session's themes
Brief writing prompts provide the opportunity to go deeper into each session. And, prayerful meditations distill the session themes into a portable form to carry around with you. I encourage you to write the meditations down and read them out loud to yourself repeatedly throughout the day. Put a copy near your bed, on your mirror, anywhere you fancy! 
Holistic Approach
A holistic approach is a mindset that takes into account the heart, the body, the mind, the spirit and the unknown as well as your community and societal experience to support the whole self. With the whole self on board the creative process deepens.
Intention
The journey always begins within, but not without taking into account the larger context we live in. Freeing ourselves and creating art from this place changes everyone. This is about full empowerment, not just about creating art.
Radical Self Love
This work is very gentle however profound. In this course, we do not dwell on trauma or its effects, but it is powerful to be able to ackowledge where we've been to ourselves and from that place real change begins.

What does Frida have to teach you?

A Session-by-Session Look:
Session 1: Sourcing Strength Session 1: Sourcing Strength
Open the creative mind and trust the process as Frida’s strengths meet your own.
In this first session, we begin with Frida’s beginning and that unspeakable, highly unique aspect we each bring to our lives and our living.
Session 2: Exploring Support Session 2: Exploring Support
Life Changes, Following the Creative Pull and Finding What Supports
This session you meet Frida during the era of her great accident. She has been changed forever and her life will never be the same. Her image invites you to intuitively explore similar experiences in your own life and through her image follow your creative mind to what is at the heart of your deepest life lesson.
Session 3: The Reflection of Relationship Session 3: The Reflection of Relationship
What can you know about yourself, your life and your lesson through your relationships
This session Frida meets her second great accident, Diego. In so many ways, Diego is the essence of Frida and Frida is the essence of Diego. Their life together was tumultuous, intensely creative, revolutionary and magical. FridaDiegomirror invites us to know ourselves through the reflections of our relationships.
Session 4: Becoming Frida Session 4: Becoming Frida
What does becoming yourself really mean? In what ways are you not yourself?
This session Frida shows us how to be our biggest, most extensive self in all directions.
Session 5: Frida Body Journey Session 5: Frida Body Journey
Imagine yourself alone, out at sea. What rises to greet you? What do you find at your core?
This session Frida provides us with a doorway into our deepest selves. Frida navigated the edges of reality that many of us try to avoid. Pain, limitation, isolation. Feel her presence with you. You are not alone. You may be surprised at what you learn about yourself.
Session 6: Frida The Painter Session 6: Frida The Painter
What does it mean to claim yourself as an artist? What door would open if you owned this power?
So often we do not take ourselves seriously as painters, artists, creators. This session invites you to see yourself creating your greatest work of art.Are you holding yourself back? Do you understand your creative power?
Session 7: Frida Mirror - Beyond the Mirror Session 7: Frida Mirror - Beyond the Mirror
Journey beyond the mirror, what lies behind the glass?
In this last and final session we come to terms with what we have gathered, where we have landed and who Frida sees in the mirror when she looks at us.
Access this course and more with classroom registration.

About Maya

 

Maya Gonzalez has been teaching about the power of creativity to heal and transform for over 20 years. She realized that it's one thing to make art and quite another to understand that WE ARE ART. All of Maya's teachings rise from her own learning and healing, inside and out. She has always used art and creativity as a tool for self-awareness and perspective through life experiences, including navigating and healing from a long-term illness/brush with death.

Hell bent on equity. Deeply committed to children's books. Maya is both an acclaimed fine artist and award-winning children's book author and artist. She is a progressive educator and activist who loves thinking the big thoughts and making things happen. www.mayagonzalez.com

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