Spinning a web of connections in our lives!
My name is Lindsay Beal, and I am the owner of Spider's Eye, a home-based, creative arts business in Victoria, British Columbia.
Art Teacher, Group Facilitator, Artist
Bio
I received my Bachelor of Arts in Social Sciences (2 years in Theatre) in 2001 and in 2010 completed my Masters of Education in Curriculum & Instruction at the University of Victoria, BC.
I have been involved in creative arts from childhood, teaching my first class at age 10 to children ages 4 - 7 years. Since then and to the present, I have taught, and facilitated creative arts groups to children and adults, many of whom, have chronic health conditions, acquired brain injury, or developmental differences.
My art education began as the youngest in a family of artists. Growing up in a house abundant in supplies and art books, complete with a mother who has a degree in Art Education, my appreciation, and adoption of the arts became second nature. My education continued with private classes and workshops, including courses at the Victoria College of Art and a variety of performing arts techniques such as Playback Theatre, Headlines Theatre's POWER PLAY training program and Pochinko Baby Clown.
I spent nine years with the Alternatives to Violence Project at Wm. Head Correctional Institute, facilitating workshops and training facilitators. For 13 years I worked at the Victoria Brain Injury Society creating, coordinating and running the Personal Empowerment Program and various art groups (writing, dance, and visual arts). From 2007 to 2015 I enjoyed working with Pandora Arts Collective Society, running an inclusive open studio. Between 2011 and 2018, I worked at HeadWay~Victoria Epilepsy & Parkinson's Centre coordinating programs, facilitating groups and consulting with individuals and families whose lives are affected by these conditions.
I am currently on the board of directors of the Inclusive Leadership Cooperative (ILC), an organization focused on bringing together youth and adults from diverse backgrounds and providing opportunities to develop inclusive leadership skills. Rooted in the work of Dr. Linda Hill and the Building Bridges Steps and aligned with the Earth Charter, ILC brings the skills of compassionate communication and connecting with differences into action. See more on my Projects page.
Learning and teaching are inseparable, like two sides of the same coin. I love groups, because dynamic interaction has a way of flipping that coin so steadily, and subtly, it's a challenge to track it and a joy to share the leadership flip.
Nature*
Nature is my most committed collaborator in all my creative endeavors. In exploring ideas and issues, I find the clearest translations from nature.
Nature reveals the existence of mystery, incites adventure, and offers intimacy. It is a source of inspiration, a refuge, and messenger. Nothing is more relaxing and rejuvenating than surrendering to its rhythm.
*Nature: plant and animal life as distinct from human. Collins Dictionary.
The Spider
Sometimes I'm clever, but mostly I just try to follow directions. I say 'try' because it's often difficult to differentiate a base and temporal reaction from a truly ethereal directive.
For many years in my youth, the Spider triggered a reaction of alarm-coated awe. It wasn't until I learned the most powerful messages can be veiled with the most frightening images, that I began with trepidation to view the world through the Spider's Eye. This is when I realized I could lead my life accordingly, or not.
Living Art*
My prayer is to use my intelligence, my compassion and my will to experience the world artfully, and to respond artfully: with integrity, spontaneity, and authenticity.
*Art: the exercise of human skill as distinguished from nature. Collins Dictionary.