The Silver cape: Protecting Yourself Through Creativity and Imagination - (and community)

Like many of us, I’ve felt a strong need for comfort and protection during these chaotic times. Perhaps we can find some of that within ourselves and our own creative practices. For example (this is a true confession 😊), when I go for my everyday walk in the early morning darkness, I sometimes imagine that I’m wearing a silver hooded cape—light as mist, but impenetrable. It shimmers around me, making me invisible and invulnerable. It’s not just a comforting thought; it’s a shield, a protective visualization that changes how I move through the world.

Imagination is often dismissed as play, but it’s so much more than that. It’s a tool for resilience, for empowerment, even for protection. Creative minds have always used symbols, images, and objects as ways to ward off danger—whether real or emotional. And we can do the same, crafting our own protective talismans through art, storytelling, and visualization.

Creating Personal Symbols of Protection
One of the simplest ways to cultivate a sense of safety is by imagining a personal protective symbol. This could be something visual, like a cloak, a shield, or an aura of light, or something more abstract—like a word, a rhythm, or a phrase that holds strength.
Here are some ways to explore that idea:

• Visualize it: Close your eyes and picture yourself surrounded by a protective force. Maybe it’s a cloak of light, a hidden doorway, an animal guardian walking beside you.
• Draw or paint it: Try sketching your protective symbol, whether it's a luminous shield, an intricate pattern, or even a sigil made of asemic writing.
  
• Create a talisman: Small, handmade objects can hold meaning. A wrapped fiber bundle, a tiny carved figure, or a smooth stone can be infused with the intention of protection.
• Write a mantra of strength: A simple phrase like “I walk unseen by harm” or “My energy is my shield” can be a quiet, steady source of reassurance

The process of making something tangible gives weight to the intention. Even the act of creating—painting, stitching, layering—can be its own form of grounding and resilience.

Art as a Protective Shield

Artists throughout history have used their work as a form of protection, consciously or unconsciously embedding symbols of safety and strength.

• Masks: From African spirit masks to Japanese Noh theater, artists have long created masks as a way to protect the wearer—sometimes from spirits, sometimes from their own fears.
• Protective symbols and sigils: The Eye of Horus, Celtic knots, hamsas, and even Pennsylvania Dutch hex signs are examples of visual art meant to shield their makers and owners.
• Folk art as protection: Many cultures have traditions of creating painted or carved objects meant to bring protection—whether it’s a home blessing, an amulet, or a pattern designed to ward off harm

My Own Experience with Art as Protection

In my own work, I’ve found that layering materials and imagery can feel like constructing a kind of shield—building something solid from fragments, creating meaning from pieces.

• The spirit dolls and assemblages I make often feel like quiet sentinels, holding a kind of presence beyond their form.
• Asemic writing has a mysterious quality to it, almost like a secret language of protection—a spell that only the subconscious can read.
• The process of creating itself—whether through wax, fiber, or collage—becomes a kind of armor against uncertainty, a space where I can shape the intangible into something real
  
• 
  

Art, in any form, has the power to hold and protect. It’s a way of claiming space, of weaving intention into the physical world. And when we engage in it with the purpose of creating our own shields—whether through imagery, objects, or words--it becomes a quiet but powerful force.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, one of the most powerful forms of protection is creative community, and that’s exactly what The Enso Circle provides. It’s a space where artists can share ideas, explore new directions, and find support in a like-minded circle. Creativity thrives in safety, and The Enso Circle offers that—a place where imagination is honored, where art becomes a refuge, and where we build not just our work, but each other. In a world that often feels uncertain, having a creative sanctuary like this is its own kind of shield.

Applications close on February 24th. If you would like to join us, we would love to welcome you!