Learning from Arts: Using Abstract Painting to Discover New Understandings and Approaches That Are Relevant for Both Personal Development and Consulting Practice

In this chapter, I describe how art, dwelling and self-inquiry can enrich learning from within; how they can bring potential to life and how they can give insights as they extend epistemology beyond intellectual, textual knowing. As an autoethnographic researcher, I use personal experience, my artistic journey and paintings to illustrate these concepts. I furthermore describe how art has influenced my professional practice as a management consultant working with values and change. This type of research is dependent on the relational principles of connecting to our inner selves and to others. It was stimulated by my doctorate using Action Research and has benefited from the connections made during that process.