We recently had the chance to connect with Pash Ga;bavy and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Pash, thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day to share your story, experiences and insights with our readers. Let’s jump right in with an interesting one: What are you being called to do now, that you may have been afraid of before?
After our family home burned in the Woolsey fire and after the recent Palisades and Altadena, CA fires, I am using my masks to raise awareness about climate change issues and how people can help themselves and others deal with climate related disasters. This is challenging during a time when climate change is being publicly refuted and called non-existent, although more people than ever are experiencing such things or know folks who are.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I work as a mask maker and performance artist. I use masks to bring to life inner archetypes that are common to many but that often go unspoken or unrecognized.
Okay, so here’s a deep one: Who taught you the most about work?
My stepmom, Liza Hughes, was a Jungian psychologist. She worked with Hal and Sidra Stone, who developed the Voice Dialogue method and a theoretical framework called the Psychology of Selves. She also worked with John Bradshaw, who was one of the early creators of Shadow and Inner Child works. She combined the inspiration of these with expressive art and masks. She taught me how to make masks and to explore the possibilities of inner integration and transformation with them.
Do you remember a time someone truly listened to you?
Working with masks was a revelation. One of my most profound moments with masks was in a Walking in Your Shoes workshop with actor/director Joseph Culp. He facilitated a group session with my inner Critic mask. After a painful performance that hadn’t gone over well, the Critic took over in my head and life and I didn’t perform for a year. Culp and the group gave space for the Critic to spew its negative perspective about me and my mask work. When he asked the Critic what I could do to help it in the future, the Critic became silent. Somehow allowing it to be genuinely heard and acknowledged was all it needed to allow me to carry on.
Next, maybe we can discuss some of your foundational philosophies and views? Is the public version of you the real you?
Working with masks publicly allows the varied aspects of my personality and identity to surface and shine in a very pure and real form. The mask archetypes offer the essence of their character in entirely genuine ways.
Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. What do you understand deeply that most people don’t?
Mask work has helped me understand on a profound level that our personalities are not us. Generally, who we think we are are actually only parts of us that are fleeting and changeable. The good and bad parts are just aspects of ourselves that need to be identified and acknowledged so that they can be absorbed into a more integrated whole. This is a deeply healing process.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.unmaskit.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/unmaskit/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@pashgal
Image Credits
Susie Lang
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