Southwestern College Santa Fe, NM
Brittany, Allegra, and Noelle wearing their Inner Critics
by Amy Hautman Bates
It felt more like a kid’s birthday party than a techniques class with glitter, glue and feathers scattered across the tables. Anything goes when it came to visualizing that little voice in our head that tells us that we are not quite good enough. I glued a metal ruler to my mask to symbolize my compulsion to make things better, measuring, checking, double checking… wondering, “are we there yet?” Constructing the masks helped us to identify and externalize these feelings. Being aware of the messages that are floating around in my head makes it harder for them to rule my world. The masks some people made were quite beautiful. Maybe they have made friends with their inner critic who chirps at them all day. I am getting to know that “inner critic” and watching it evolve into a little critical chirping bird instead of a vulture swooping down and hijacking my thoughts.
Sara and her Inner Critic
