ABOUT INWARD & ARTWARD
At the Inward & Artward School of Creativity, the creative journey begins within. Our workshops, trainings, and resources invite you to deepen your relationship with your own imagination, while transforming that inner spark into a sustainable creative practice. From our roots in the mountains of Asheville, NC, and in kinship with Story Parlor, we are growing a global community where self-discovery and artistic expression meet—nurturing courageous voices, one story at a time.
A note from the I&A Founder, Erin Hallagan Clare….
In 2015, I launched my first entrepreneurial venture: producing multidisciplinary events and classes exploring the shared threads of story and expression across art forms. That work eventually took root in Asheville with the opening of Story Parlor—a venue founded on the belief that creativity and storytelling are pathways to understanding the human condition, and that something profound happens when a community gathers to witness and create together. Over the years, I’ve facilitated many classes grounded in this ethos, and a recurring pattern has emerged: many participants arrive with deep-seated doubts in their creative power—a narrative often perpetuated by early experiences with teachers or authority figures who, however unintentionally, silenced something vital.
The Inward & Artward School of Creativity is a direct response to that silencing. Our classes, workshops, and trainings offer a pathway back to the creative self—not through mastery or perfection, but through meaning-making, personal narrative, and sustained practice. Designed for artists, facilitators, and anyone seeking to reconnect with their voice, I&A exists to dismantle the narrow definitions and barriers that have constrained creative expression, inviting participants to reclaim creativity as an essential part of how they live, reflect, and make.
You can find Erin’s full bio here.
The Inward & Artward Model of Creativity
The Inward & Artward Model of Creativity offers a research-based, non-linear framework to map the inner terrain of the creative process. It invites relational exploration of four interwoven domains—Personal Stories, Art-Making, Fear, and Meaning—cyclical landscapes underpinning one’s creative journey.
Personal Stories explore the core narratives we carry—shaped by culture, heritage, trauma, joy, and imagination—as both fuel and friction for creative work.
Art-Making is the tangible language through which inner narratives take form and invite others into our experience.
Fear is not pathologized, but embraced as a generative tension that can surface important insight and direction.
Meaning considers how we metabolize experience—bridging the personal and collective to find coherence through interpretation and transformation.
Our I&A Facilitators have been trained in this methodology and offer a diversity of offerings rooted in practical tools and accessible, process-oriented pathways that nurture a holistic ecosystem of inner reflection and outward expression.
The logo
The enso is a sacred Zen symbol that means “circle of togetherness.” Traditionally, it is drawn as a meditative practice using only one brushstroke, exemplifying an artist in a state of creation and a reflection of their innermost self. Along with symbolizing the beauty in imperfection, it represents acceptance, connection, one-mindedness, and the art of letting go of expectations.
The ampersand is a symbol of discovery, hope, and saying “yes” to the possibilities that await us. This traditional version of the ampersand displays a broken infinity sign, boding a reminder that nothing lasts forever, and we are always in a state of transition and change. Our selves, and our creative journeys, are never done or finished; there is always more to glean on the horizon.