Healing Through Expressive Art
Rita Kettani
At the Healing Through Expressive Art workshop, I tried to imagine what emotions feel like to me. I began to think of a sphere, at times swirling, and at times pulsing with movement, color, and consciousness. It can be the size of a tangerine in the morning and grow to the size of a melon as the day progresses. It hums with energy. It can lodge itself in one’s body, at times gravitating towards the lantern that is the heart. It draws energy from its spark and rhythm. At other times, it seeks another cradle of energy, in a galaxy where dreams and thoughts form. It leaves fingerprints in memories and at times amplifies them, pinning them in corridors of identity. As we learn and grow, it acts as an untrained conductor, seeking to draw notes into a symphony, a personal symphony of lived experiences and sensation. This orb is often out of tune, blemished with darkness, uncertainty, and fear. It rises however and tries to recall and recapture its oceans, suns, and moons. It tries to find an anchor where it can forge more color, song, ride the waves, and dispel unwanted intruders. It has no paintbrushes, just an instinct strong enough to move like the wind and carve out labyrinths of echoes and shadows. The stillness can shiver and hum and absorb whispers of feelings. In between heartbeats and reflections, the orb asks to be seen, to be felt, and to share its truth. It cannot fade. It is shelter, balm, and rain. It is good.
Kadidja Vohou-Diaby
The sunset represents a rich tapestry of emotions—optimism, mourning, grief, joy, calmness, and peace—all woven into one moment. It invites us to look up at the sky and reflect on the day we’ve lived. In a world overwhelmed by political chaos and uncertainty, the sunset slows time just enough for us to sit with the complexity of our feelings. But more than a mirror for sorrow or frustration, the sunset offers a quiet promise: joy still exists. Not the loud, ecstatic kind of joy, but a softer, grounded version—a calm reassurance that we are still here, still breathing, still capable of moving forward. This kind of joy reminds us that survival is a form of resistance, and rest is a radical act. As the sun lowers, the moon rises, signaling stillness and solitude. It is in that gentle transition that we are called to replenish ourselves. The sunset, then, is more than an ending; it is a sacred pause—a reminder that, despite terror and turmoil, we will endure. It tells us that healing is possible, that rest is necessary, and that joy, in its quietest forms, will always return with each setting sun.
Rita Kettani is a doctoral student at Kennesaw State University whose research explores cultural hybridity, intersectionality, interfaith relations, and conflict management. A passionate educator and artist, she incorporates painting and art therapy into her teaching. Outside academia, she enjoys traveling to Morocco, visiting museums, and leading community art workshops. Rita aspires to teach courses on gender, religion, and peace, blending scholarship with creative expression.
Kadidja Vohou-Diaby is a Ph.D. student in International Conflict Management at Kennesaw State University and an aspiring political theorist, educator, and scholar-activist. Her research focuses on systemic inequality and the liberation of marginalized communities, bridging theory and practice to advance justice both locally and globally. Committed to transformative teaching and engaged scholarship, Kadidja envisions academia as a space rooted in care, accountability, and collective liberation.