My Services

MARI: Mandala Assessment Research Instrument

Peek into your psyche through MARI, a Jungian-based, multi-level color and pattern system initially developed by art therapist Joan Kellogg.

As a Certified MARI Practitioner, I guide you through this 3–3.5 hour one-on-one session using symbols, colors, and mandalas to reveal a snapshot of your inner world, offering intuitive insight into both challenges and strengths.

Format

  • One-on-one sessions

Settings

  • My SW Portland studio
  • Your location

Who It’s For

  • Teens through adults
  • Individuals seeking clarity or personal insight
  • People navigating transitions, stress, or life questions
  • Anyone curious about what their unconscious has to say

What To Expect

A MARI session begins with a deck of symbol cards, shown in random order. You’ll be invited to select six that you feel most drawn to, one that feels least appealing, and two that seem to offer guidance for a personal issue you quietly hold in mind. Because symbols predate language and culture, your choices reveal a deeper, intuitive knowing.

Next, you’ll choose colors to pair with your chosen symbols. These symbol-color combinations are then placed on the mandala. This step creates a snapshot of your psyche, highlighting both conscious and unconscious dynamics at play.

Together, we’ll explore the meaning of your selections and what they might be communicating. The session closes with a look at your personal mandala drawing, and after our session, I will provide you with a written interpretation report you can revisit.

Many people describe MARI as an accessible way to receive insight, clarity, and validation directly from their own unconscious mind. While I am not a therapist, this work can complement therapy by uncovering material that can be further explored with a mental health professional. Sessions provide a chance to reconnect with your whole self and to listen closely to your innermost messages.

An appointment begins in-person for a 2-3 hour session. I then devote time to written documentation for the client’s reference. A virtual consultation to review the findngs is also available.

To schedule with me, fill out the Contact Form at the bottom of this page.

Looking forward to working with you!

For more general information, see: https://www.maricreativeresources.com

Four hand drawn mandalas
Four hand drawn MARI mandalas
TT's hand drawn MARI
RL's Mandala
MA's MARI Mandala

Making Collage Mandalas

Discover the wisdom of your unconscious mind. In a 2–2.5 hour session, you’ll create a personal mandala from curated images—an intuitive process that reveals inner truths and continues to offer insight long after the session ends.

Formats

  • One-on-one sessions
  • Small group workshops (up to 6 people)
  • Classroom lessons (up to 20 people)

Settings

  • My SW Portland studio for workshops
  • Your location for workshops and classroom lessons (public, private, or commercial space)

Who It’s For

  • Teens through adults
  • People seeking clarity, healing, or reconnection with their whole self
  • Those integrating a psychedelic or spiritual journey
  • Individuals navigating transitions, grief, or stress

What To Expect

A Collage Mandala session is a guided creative process that invites your unconscious to speak through imagery. All supplies are provided.

We begin with a brief conversation and gentle stretch to help you settle in and leave the outside world behind. Using compass, pencil, and ruler as guides, you’ll balance gentle structure with free-form creativity. From there, you’ll choose images from curated magazines within a set timeframe, allowing your unconscious to lead the way.

You’ll build your mandala in stages, following light structure while freely responding to the imagery. The session is held mostly in silence to maintain flow with your unconscious, with moments of reflection and guidance as needed.

When your piece feels complete, we’ll close with conversation and personal reflection. You’ll also be invited to note key insights on the back of your mandala, to revisit as your piece continues to reveal meaning over time.

Two participants of mandala collage workshop
Mandala collage shared by a workshop participant.
Participant in mandala collage workshop.
Analog collage done by a workshop participant.
Mandala collage shared by its creator.
analog collage
Mandala collage shared by its creator.

Commissions:

Details of 4 Wallhangings made of collaged fabrics

Textiles

 

I apply my lifelong skills with collage, surface design, and fabric to interior decor. My Travel Textiles series is focused on one-of-a-kind wall-hangings. Made from recycled fabrics, they are pieced into compositions based on Golden Means proportions. Each then evokes impressions of the art, culture, and architecture of the global places they reference. Prior to this, I created repeat designs for commercial textile companies that produced them as woven yardages. For national interior design showrooms, I produced lines of hand-painted wall coverings.

 

Saturn Portrait
2020. 18 x20"

Artworks

For avid patrons, creative professionals, and institutions, I create 2D artworks. During my children’s decade in Waldorf schools, I facilitated myriad fine art and design projects. These ranged from classroom artworks for benefit auctions, to backdrops for plays and festivals. Since then, I selectively apply my talent towards creating mandalas for both clients' personal and commercial use.

Testimonials

"I was struck by how much resonated from this MARI experience. There's comfort when such results confirm internal dialogues and observed life themes and then offer helpful suggestions for working with them."
MayaInterior Designer, Yoga Teacher
Doing the MARI with MJ was a pleasantly positive learning experience. It felt very accurate to the alignment of my life. Truly magical."
MichaelContractor, Drummer
"Like faith itself, MJ’s “Reaffirming Faith” presides over larger and more visible artworks at the heart of our home. Hers always tells a story, is fun and loving, and in line, media, and color, is never ordinary. MJ's wise work delights with every viewing."
Andrew C.​Attorney
"Working with MJ has been a delight. Her creativity, easy manner, and considerable artistic skills have encouraged me into deeper understanding, helping me to realize the fullest expression of my work."
Christopher U.Writer and Filmmaker
"Two of MJ’s extraordinary paintings hang adjacent to our bed. They are often the first sight that comes into my focus upon waking in the morning. The colors and shapes beckon me forward and inward at the same time, reminding me to breathe in the beauty that the world offers up everyday."
SusanRetired, Park Service
"MJ presents her collage classes with well-researched knowledge, organization, passion, and accessibility. Her high regard for this medium, with her teaching style, allowed me as a painter, to relate to the artistic elements of composition with a new understanding and with a fresh delight in the process."
Robin L.MSW, LCSW
"MARI was new to me...I found myself very curious about the process. It was fascinating when MJ shared with me insights around what I had drawn. I felt like I learned valuable aspects about myself, especially on the unconscious level. I appreciated the space she held, allowing me to feel relaxed and open."
J.A.S. Somatic Art Teacher, Mixed Media Artist
"The MARI exploration started out as an adventure, a fun event. Later I was surprised at the in-depth review which included valuable pointers. Encouraging, positive findings made me want to make a "to do" list. I looked at old wounds control issues, and sources of anxiety."
JannebethArtist, Advocate
"MJ's teaching style towards entering the creative zone and supporting the collage experience was perfection. She is such a phenomenal guide and intuitive."
KimCFP, Wealth Manager
"MJ's guidance is... part creative challenger, part soul cheerleader, and part devil's advocate. I love how she encouragingly leads this work/play."
JillianDir., Lajja Studio

Contact

MIXED MEDIA ARTIST | MARI PRACTITIONER