Artistic and Arts-based Projects and Courses
The practice, development and contemplation of the arts are central to Anthroposophy. The aim is not just creative self-expression but also transcendence and transformation of the individual and also of the material substances used in art-making towards the spiritual. Without the arts, Anthroposophy will go ‘short of breath’, states Steiner, and remain just concepts, “impertinently rigid, philistine and horribly scientific formulations.”2
Steiner also emphasised the role of arts as a force for individual and social renewal. Therefore, the arts play a focal role in education and therapy, as well as in personal and professional development in any sphere of human activity.
In the Australian scene, there are well-established vocational trainings and professional practices in the performing arts, including eurythmy, music, the visual arts and architecture. Many of these are listed on this site under Adult Education and Training.
Listed below are current projects and initiatives.
Visual Arts
Painted Space Studio
In Creativity, Art and Spirituality Meet
Art as a Path of Schooling for the Soul, is open to anyone interested in combining inner work with artistic practice, but is particularly aimed at professional development or refreshment for artists, teachers and therapists.
This two-year online part-time course offers the flexibility of studying at home under the direction of highly experienced teacher yet in the company of an international online community of like-minded students of art and anthroposophy.
Painted Space also has short online and on-the-ground visual arts courses and webinars with a focus on art as a spiritual practice. There are both introductory and advanced courses available on painting, drawing, Steiner’s colour theory, Waldorf curriculum, therapeutic indications and nature study. Courses are a combination of the classes, pre-recorded videos, webinars, self-study and individual mentoring.
Find out more about all the courses here.
Performing Arts
Heart Fire Centre for Speech and Drama
Announcing a new speech and drama initiative
The Art of Acting Workshop 26-28 July 2024 is the first workshop for the new Heart Fire Centre for Speech and Drama. It will explore the development of character, dramatic mood and interaction. Find out more here or contact Katrina Stowe.
Situated in proximity to Pacifica College of Eurythmy, Heart Fire Centre is based in Samford Valley, Queensland. The Heart Fire methodology will bring together the Chekhov approach to drama, Steiner’s creative speech formation and eurythmy. The Centre is still mainly in the conception stage, but is holding introductory workshops in the Samford Valley, QLD over the next few years.
Read more about Heart’s Fire Centre’s approach.
StoryVision
Inscribing Signs with a Finger Dipped in Light…
StoryVision offers workshops, seminars and courses Australia-wide on the creative power of storytelling and stories. For details, please contact Iris Curteis.
Storyvision has a new Schooling Course Inscribing Signs with a Finger Dipped in Light… under the auspices of StoryVision, about the spiritual pathway to understanding death. It presents a method and process of inner development for people dedicated to accompanying the dying. It equally provides personal and professional development for those seeking emotional intelligence, self- awareness and lifelong learning. We recommend it for counsellors, health practitioners, carers, social and support workers, educators, and those who wish to care for the newly deceased, such as funeral personnel and celebrants.
The schooling course runs from March 24 – November 24 2024 at Harmony Centre, Mittagong, NSW. For more information, please contact Iris Curteis or Irmhild Kleinhenz.
The Parsifal Project
A journey of trials and transformation
If you would like to support this initiative, you can also donate to the project to help launch their vision. Go to Give Now – Ink Pot Arts – 10 Reasons... Please include a note about supporting The Parsifal Project. Tax-deductible receipts automatically issued.
Word Sisters
Performing arts meets biographical work
Word Sisters have been creating as a collaborative community since 2017. They are four creative arts practitioners (performers, storytellers, workshop facilitators, poets, and writers) who have a common background in Anthroposophy. They initially met over 20 years ago exploring Steiner’s Speech and Drama methods through workshops in Western Australia. By combining Steiner’s Speech and Drama indications, eurythmy, creative writing and biography work, they devise performances and related workshops. A playful curiosity and phenomenological research approach has enabled them to craft and share regular performance/workshop projects.
Find out more from Renate Millonig or Read a review of their work.
Arts-based Research
Stream of Life Research Studio
Now the ears of my ears awake. And now the eyes of my eyes are opened.¹
The Stream of Life Research Studio is an interdisciplinary practice-based research collective who study the dynamic activity of the etheric or life forces. An underlying theme of their research is working with living picture imaginations from the macrocosmic world of stars, the ‘mesocosmic’ forces of nature, and the microcosm that is the human being. This Studio seeks to investigate and understand spiritual science in the context of the 21st century and build connections to the traditional fields of academic research.
Stream of Life runs regular webinars and occasional workshops on phenomenological practice in different professions. It is an opportunity for researchers and practitioners who use this approach in their professional work to share their work and process with likeminded people. It is also a place for newcomers to this methodology to learn more about it. For more information about the webinars look here or contact Jude Samson
There are also many individual artists, designers, composers, musicians and architects with their own practices. They frequently advertise their courses and events in the Directory or Events
¹ from i thank You God for most this amazing by e.e. cummings
2 Rudolf Steiner,’ Lecture III’, The Arts and their Mission, 2 June 1923, Dornach, CW276
Photo credits: courtesy of Fiona Campbell