about

 

 

Hi!

 

I’m Mary K Clark – an artist, writer, oral storyteller, play facilitator and bad ass who believes our voices are gifts and story and play are instruments of connection. I live at The Cottage, in Western New York and work with writers, storytellers, artists and facilitators who live in the US.

 

My art is practical and abstract, simple & complex, irritated and delighted. silent and loud, spontaneous and reactive, and on it goes. I appreciate both sides as well as the inside of the coin. I like mud puddles, chewing on sticks and dirt between my toes. Yet, I am not always fond of getting dirty and can’t recall chewing on a stick.

 

I explore the connective lines between and within the written and spoken word, personal story, play, the creative voice and personal leadership.

 

 

The backstory 

 

 

Once upon a time I was offered an invitation of sorts while grocery shopping. I was passing through the pet supply aisle when I got the idea to buy a dog bone, and toss it on the floor of the living room as a joke.  Look, I headed down that aisle to buy cereal – not waste money on a bone for a dog I didn’t even own! I didn’t buy the bone.

 

The idea didn’t go away – every time I went to the grocery store it was waiting for me. Then, one day I bought a bone, a small white bone, and tossed it on the living room floor. Within 48 hours, the most amazing thing happened, my imagination and a room full of people gave birth to an invisible, three-toed, 150-pound, beagle named “bill” (small “b” please). Now that was the beginning of a real adventure! The beginning of a story was born. I didn’t realize it at the time but it would be fleshed out and then some.

 

A few weeks later, dawg-gone-it-all, I summoned the courage to tell a crazy story about a dog no one could see to a real live audience. I’d never told a story in public before. Not too long after I began telling stories professionally.

 

Over time, I realized the value of both story and play in leading an engaged, connected, creative, and self-directed life. But, I needed to know more and continued studying, learning and developing my practice around our human need for play and meaning making (story).

 

That wild hair idea was life changing – it was an invitation – to the magic of play, to listening and sharing stories, and to the importance of our creative voices.

Learn about my

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Want to keep in touch? Subscribe to my Blog

to learn about new programs, workshops, etc., keep up with my latest projects, and get my latest blog posts on story, play, the creative voice and personal leadership.

Subscribe