2026 BATA Symposium Pre-Conference: "The Creative Impulse - Curiosity, Play, & the Expressive Arts"

Dr. Krystal Demaine, PhD, REAT, MT-BC, RYT

 What happens when we slow down, tune in, listen, breathe, play, and become curious? This full-day experiential workshop invites participants to explore the expressive arts through movement, sound, music, image, writing, story, play, and witnessing. Grounded in the history and theory of expressive arts therapy and informed by creativity, contemplative practice, and integrative health, participants will explore how the arts flow across modalities through playful experimentation, embodied practice, reflection, and shared experience. Together, we will amplify the creative impulse as a source of curiosity, connection, and wonder.

Creative expression is an essential human practice through which we imagine, communicate, make meaning, and create connection. This keynote explores creativity as a fundamental human capacity that extends beyond artistic production and therapeutic intervention into education, healing, wellness, innovation, and everyday life. Through stories, reflection, and creative engagement, participants will consider how we can amplify the expressive arts as pathways to belonging, resilience, imagination, and transformation. Together, we will explore what it means to amplify creative expression as a vital part of being human.