“Arts-based research produces art as an engine of meaning-making, as something that has an independent existence apart from the artist… This is why I think Jungian arts-based research is therapy with the world.” — Susan Rowland

“The artwork is a materialization of the psychic image so that it can leave the person who originally had the image and go and be a repository of psychic energy and meaning-making for other people.” — Susan Rowland

“Stuff happens that you didn’t plan for and it’s very often very valuable… Just as dreams will produce material that you didn’t want or expect, so will any form of art practice.” — Susan Rowland

“We are defeated. The question is, what then? What do you do with the defeat?… My books are meant to show these women coming to terms with their defeat and using their own suffering to help other people and to make a new family.” — Susan Rowland

“The most frightening thing about my mother’s religion was the certainty.” — Susan Rowland

“The problem with religion is it getting entangled with power… It may be that at some level there has to be some entanglement with power, if only to allow people’s subjective experiences to be tolerated by other people.” — Susan Rowland

“I want to allow for the unexpected twist and turn and to try to work positively with that… That’s kind of how I feel about allowing the mystery to be part of the story and not needing to be certain about things.” — Susan Rowland