Hi, I’m Liz Nilsson.
Yes, with a name like that, I am Swedish. That said, for the last 30 years I’ve lived in Scotland, London and now Dublin, but I keep a strong connection with Sweden by living there every summer. I have two grown up children and I am married to an Irish man.
I’m an artist, art facilitator and yoga teacher who loves being in nature and adores delicious and wholesome food. My roots as an artist are in textiles and printing. I’m an experienced teacher and facilitator and have for 30 years been delivering workshops and classes in the medium of screen print, block print and visual investigation I have a degree in Textile design, MA in Textile Art and another MA in Social Engaged Practice. You can find out lots more on my artistic work here.
You will appreciate that as a textile artist & designer I am a little bit obsessed with pattern and repetition. I believe that repetition is a meditative experience, whether you are making a screen print, putting marks on a page, moving through vinyasa or simply breathing. When you are moving with the breath in yoga, you can go into a meditative flow. I think that we can access the same space via craft and visual work with creative repetition. If this sounds interesting, you might like to read my short essay on the magic of repetition.
I’ve practised yoga for 25 years. Over that time, I’ve found that my daily yoga practice helps me navigate life’s ups and downs and to stay calm in challenging situations. Yoga also helps me to stay fit, strong and flexible – important as I get older. I completed my 200-hour teacher training at the Yoga Room, Dublin and have in addition also trained to teach YinYoga, Restorative Yoga and Yoga Nidra.
I co-founded Seedpod Yoga 2018, a friendly little studio in Dublin (with another Swedish yoga teacher; Anna Gronerus) where we host small and affordable classes for the beginner and improver, one-to-one practice and yoga events.
As a yogi, I am on a journey of endless learning, travelling annually to India to develop my practice and gain inspiration for teaching.
Yoga & Creativity
Yoga, the practice of conscious breathing, movement, and stretching, is an essential tool in developing mindfulness, and mindfulness is an essential tool for creative practice. When we are present in the moment, we feel calmer and we are more open to receiving inspiration that can feed our creativity.
I have experienced first-hand how yoga helps us to overcome creative blockages in our minds and bodies, and significantly increase energy, focus, and originality in our lives. That’s why I started to run workshops and retreats where yoga and artistic expression are combined.