In These Bodies, On These Lands: Iyengar Yoga and art-making

Learn Iyengar Yoga posture and breathing practices to support, enliven, and uplift your creative practice/s. Experience ways to integrate journaling/writing, drawing, and intuitive painting with movement (Asana) and breath (Pranayama) rooted in this Yoga tradition. Try out various approaches to making and moving in an encouraging, nourishing environment.

As a professional artist, Jennifer’s drawings, performances, videos and writing are truly interwoven with her Yoga practice. She will share approaches for working with writing prompts that honour the body’s knowing, experimenting with intentional mark-making, drawing from the body, and ways of connecting embodied movement and making that will plant seeds of inspiration – and lead to new rituals and insights.

No Yoga or art experience necessary. Bring a journal, some blank paper, a few colourful mark-making tools (felts, paints, pastels, things that delight you!) and your curiosity.

Bring layers – be prepared to be in nature/outdoors for some of our time together.

Program Highlights

• Develop deeper body/mind awareness and connection.
• Experiment with new approaches to creative expression and feel more confident exploring your artistic ideas.
• Cultivate tenderness towards yourself and learn practices to connect with rejuvenation and deep rest.
• Learn basic aspects of Yoga history and philosophy.
• Develop a basic understanding of the fact that we’re practicing an ancient Indigenous art/science (Yoga) on specific, ancient lands that have been tended by Indigenous communities since time immemorial.

Expected Activities

• Daily Iyengar Yoga classes featuring basic postures (Asana) and breathing practices (Pranayama).
• Hands-on intuitive drawing and painting, connected to Yoga explorations.
• Journaling/writing using a range of prompts – experiments with stream of consciousness writing.
• Practicing approaches to movement and hands-on making designed for the beginner and the experienced alike.
• Hands-on making connected to the beautiful lands and waters at Hollyhock.

“Jennifer was passionate about the topics we were discussing and curious and respectful of what students had to say which created a safe space and sense of community. I really appreciated the different variations of poses to accommodate each person’s needs and abilities. She has clearly done a lot of work around inclusivity, diversity, and equity.” – Student evaluation from University of Victoria course

“I would like to thank you for being such a wonderful instructor. We appreciated how patient you were during classes, the guidance you provided to maximize each pose and how encouraging you were! I had no idea I could do a shoulder stand and it was so much fun to accomplish that!” – Yoga student from classes on an urban reserve

“I have known Jennifer for nearly a decade: in her capacity as an innovative art educator through her practice as a professional artist as her student in Iyengar yoga. Sparking new insights, revealing interconnections between communities, contemporary art practice and theory, body, intellect and spirit, Jennifer is a generous teacher.” – Executive Director of a major Canadian museum

“It has been such a gift to experience your yoga classes as you gently guide with such precision and presence.” – Yoga student

Daily Schedule

A detailed schedule will be emailed to you about 30 days prior to your program. Click here to view a sample program schedule.