Sweetgum Workshop is an open minded christian mystic experience.

What is Sweetgum Workshop and what is it that you do?

Sweetgum Workshop is community focused work outside of my personal writing and art practices. Sweetgum Workshop contains two branches. The first branch is a spiritual poetry and art workshop that includes, prompts, time for creation and discussion for groups of creatives. The second branch is public performance art by me, Nina Oteria, which includes poetry readings, as well as short, nontraditional, scripted or unscripted public art performances or experiences that often encourage the participation of the public. Sweetgum Workshop rests on a foundation of the longstanding tradition of christian mysticism, which focuses on having a direct, personal, and transformative experience of the presence of God.

Workshop

• creatives gather in a space to participate in a specific creative & spiritual experience

• focused on prompts, time for creation, sharing, and discussion

• read more about the vision for the workshop here

Performance Art

• What is performance art?

  • artworks that are created through actions performed by the artist or other participants, which may be live or recorded, spontaneous or scripted. a nontraditional art form often with political or topical themes that typically features a live presentation to an audience or onlookers (as on a street) and engage the viewer encouraging their active participation in artistic production 

• What performance art does Sweetgum Workshop encompass?

  • poetry readings

  • scripture card readings

  • poetic blessings

  • other live art experiences

  • public art installations

  • providing an opening for the presence of God through public art, poetry, and performances

  • engages the public through short creative experiences

  • often outdoors/on the street/in open, publicly accessible spaces