Liane Wakabayashi

On my 36th birthday I received the great unexpected gift of my life. I began to draw and paint after nearly 15 years of being a full-time journalist, editor and creative writing teacher. I was all in my head and looking for a way out, so I had taken a train out to Mount Fuji and spent the day learning to paint from a Welsh artist friend who taught me that everything to learn about art was what I already knew, experienced and adored. This friend initiated me to the exquisite pleasure of not knowing or anticipating the art that waits to be expressed from within. The element of surprise made the process of painting and drawing exciting every time I sat down with art supplies. So from that day forward I turned to art for relaxation and contemplation. I would program an intention before I drew, and let the intention manifest in random colors and forms.

My background in art history made me hunger for meaning. I sought to decode the hidden message in each artwork, certain that by accessing a positive message from intuition, I could use my art to refine relationships, ambitions, and uplift my emotions. I worked mostly in pure chakra colors, staying clear of blacks and browns because I had been strongly influenced by the chakra teachings of Barbara Brennan and Caroline Myss. I wanted to do my own experiment, to see if by using the chakra colors I could undergo physical and palpable healing to mind, body and spirit. I found that I easily was influenced by the impact of bright beautiful colors. Rainbow colors can be understood to correspond with the 7 energy centers and the 7 colors of the rainbow. To my satisfaction, using these rainbow chakra colors has proven over and over again to gently prod feelings of calm, wellness and clarity—all leading to a release of more vital energy to fully enjoy and participate in creating the life I wanted.

After about 5 years of doing intuitive art this way, a period when I coincidentally gave birth to my two children Seiji and Mirai, I was ready to share what I was doing. The first Genesis Art Workshops were launched in Janaury 2001 with a homemade deck of “Genesis” cards. Over the years, this deck has evolved into a complete system for creating, refining and interpreting art that I call The Genesis Way, presented to children and adults of all ages and backgrounds. More can be read about my system at www.genesiscards.com and the facebook page www.facebook.com/genesisartworkshops.

Liane Wakabayashi is founding director of Genesis Healing Arts Center and creator of the Genesis Cards. Her pastels and paintings have been exhibited in many venues in Tokyo, including the Genkan Gallery at Tokyo American Club and Design Festa Gallery in Harajuku. She holds an MFA in arts administration from Columbia University and a BA magna cum laude in art history from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Formerly an arts, natural healing and travel writer for The Japan Times and ANA Wingspan, in 2008 she published the Genesis Way: Creating Art through Intuition, available at bookstores throughout Tokyo. Genesis Healing Arts Center, the headquarters for intuitive art studies with Liane Wakabayashi and staff, is located in central Tokyo. Liane is married to therapist and author Akihiko Wakabayashi and is mom to Mirai, 12, and Seiji, 7.