Art Sphere’s “The Envelope Projects” are creative assignments for facilitating community members facing physical, mental and emotional challenges to poverty, incarceration and violence to explore their lives through self-reflection and make art for self-empowerment.
When we are awaiting news, envelopes represent lack of control …if we get the news we like we will be happy and if we don’t there will be suffering.
As the symbolic dream meaning of envelopes explains: everyone struggles in life with frustrations that at time can really only be overcome by helping ourselves cultivate a harmonious mental attitude.
As part of “The Envelope Projects”, participants write themselves a message to be read in a year, five years, or even ten or for a particularly challenging point in their lives. On another unfolded envelope that they draw their internal self inside the envelope and their external self outside then refold. They put messages or images to strengthen this inner self inside envelope. The outside of a third envelope can be collaged with what holds one back, the inside with what one wants.
Often the underlying questions students ask themselves are: How do I perceive myself? “How am I pushing myself to new limits?” “Is my identity different because of _______?” How can I come better to terms with my inner and outer selves? What messages do I need to tell myself to be the person I want to be?