TED Therapeutic Art with Sophie*

Wednesday, February 4th 2026
1pm PT * 3pm CT * 4pm ET
1 hour

RSVP to Jacque art@tedcommunity.org

Art Prompt: Collective Diversity
In our art, we will be focusing on the concept of repetition, which can provide both a sense of calming and connect to the themes of this year’s Rare Disease Month. Choose a shape or line and repeat it within your artwork. As you repeat it, allow small variations—changes in size, spacing, pressure, or color—to emerge. Consider making one of the shapes as a representation of you––how is your shape unique or similar compared to the rest? Where is it placed amongst the rest? As you work, reflect on how repetition can create a sense of collectivity, while each variation shows individuality and diversity within the whole. This prompt honors the idea that while rare conditions may feel isolating, together they represent a vast and diverse community—each person unique, each voice essential, empowered when coming together.

Suggested Art Materials:
Any media could be used, but here are some ideas. Collage would fit well with this prompt––using pre-printed material (magazines, books, scrapbook paper) or patterned paper you create yourself. Various collage media cut into multiple of the same shape would allow for both repetition and diversity. Another suggestion is to use paint marker, permanent marker, or oil pastel to create shapes or lines, then filling in the rest with watercolor.

Zoom Credentials:
Contact Jacque: art@tedcommunity.org

*Sophie Restall is an Art Therapist (ATR-P) and an Associate Marriage and Family Therapist (AMFT) with a passion for using creative expression to help people flourish.

TED ART & Creative Studio with JACQUE*

Saturday, February 21st – 1pm PST, 3pm CST, 4pm EST
2 hours

RSVP directly to Jacque for Zoom Log In: art@tedcommunity.org

Theme: More Than You Can Imagine

This month is dedicated to raising global awareness for the 300 million people worldwide living with a rare disease. In honor of Rare Disease Month, we call for action to ensure that people living with a rare disease have the same opportunities, access, and support to fully participate in family life, work, and social activities.

Through art, we raise our voices and share our lived experiences—issuing a call for equity, visibility, research, and inclusion for people with rare diseases.
We invite you to tell your story in whatever way feels right to you: literal, symbolic, or abstract. You might explore the contrast between what people see and what we live or express something that feels difficult to put into words. Consider the idea of an outer layer and an inner world, and use color as a metaphor for hope, research, visibility, access, or anything else that feels meaningful to you.

Suggested Art Supply List

Use any materials that inspire you and spark your creativity! 

• Mixed media paper
• Canvas
• Rock/Stone
• Acrylic paint or paint pens
• Watercolor paints/pencils
• Oil pastels
• Tissue paper/foil for layering
• Fabric scraps, string, yarn, bubble wrap

Color ideas:

• Bright colors = visibility, advocacy, hope
• Muted or dark tones = invisibility, fatigue, waiting
• Metallics = value, dignity, research, breakthroughs
• Gradients = transition, progress, uncertainty, becoming

Words:

You may choose to include words, or phrases—visible, hidden, or layered.  These could reflect thoughts, diagnoses, questions or things you wish were better understood.

Create in a way that feels meaningful to you.  Your way of creating is more than you can imagine!

*Jacque Boogher is the Director of TED ART & Creative Studio, a TED patient, and the highly talented leader of our monthly TED ART sessions as well as our special projects.