Blog
Exploring the Nature Crisis through Art
Sunday 6th September 2026
Cari Bridgen
Cari Bridgen, who some of you met on the Reconnection to Sacred Nature retreat, shares her experience of running a Contemplative Art Group exploring the nature crisis. Cari was an Art Psychotherapist for 20 years, and has been a Spiritual Accompanier for the last 10 years.
There is a lovely retreat centre nearby in East Molesey called The House of Prayer who invited me to run a six week Contemplative Art Group with a nature theme. For each session I prepared a small liturgy, a time of meditation, some poetry and music, with a homily around biblical gardens. There were nine attendees, including myself.
The course started in spring, a wonderful time to reflect on nature. For our first session we considered the Garden of Eden. We spent time outside, just sitting and taking in the spring air and flowers, before making our image. ‘But ask the animals and they will teach you, or the birds in the sky and they will tell you; or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish in the sea inform you’.
The next two sessions we considered the catastrophic effects of climate change, and used the garden of Gethsemane as a prompt. We considered implications from The National Emergency Briefing. One person had been to Iceland, and their piece explored how a volcanic eruption could destroy the whole ice cap.
Gradually we emerged from despair into the garden of Resurrection, and people began to think about hope, and what might be a realistic hope. Each person explored their own journey within the context of the nature crisis, and the biblical stories we were considering.
It was interesting to observe how each person reflected upon these differing states in their own way. We had a few house rules to create safety. People were keen to talk about what had emerged in their reflections, appreciating the space to think and feel safely. We created a small community for a time, and through it we connected with our deeper feelings.
We thought about the more nature based ways of some indigenous communities and the need for both Jesus and Sophia (the Holy Spirit) in our faith journey. All came into our reflections as we considered a huge change in consciousness gradually emerging from the wreckage.
“Awake O my soul, to the sacred dreams that are stirring within you. Awake to the imagination of the heart and the cherished hopes of what is yet to be. Do not be afraid”.
Cari will be running a six week Icon-making course at the House of Prayer starting on Wednesday 28 October 2026.
Visit The House of Prayer website to book on the course.
Cari started her career with a Degree in Art at Birmingham University, and more recently learnt to make Icons with Peter Murphy (Master Iconographer) in Canterbury.