Lucia Capacchione is the best-selling author of 22 books, including: Recovery of Your Inner Child, The Creative Journaland The Power of Your Other Hand. Hear Lucia in episodes one, five, 40, and 57 of The Path to Authenticity.
If your life were a novel, what would be the title?
Living from the Inside Out
Where were you born?
West Hollywood, CA
Where is the place you call home?
Cambria, California. The home of my spirit is Assisi, Italy, and of my heritage is the region of Puglia, Italy. Although my father was not from this particular town, Alberobello, is my favorite city in that province.
When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?
As I was growing up, I wanted to be a dancer/ ballerina. That route was cut off due to a slight heart murmur. In high school, a journalist, then an artist, then an actress (for awhile), then an artist again (which I did become).
What is your profession?
Art Therapist, Artist, Author, Trainer of mental health and education professionals. I also had a retail store for 10 years, a co-op art gallery, from 2009 to 2019. Previous careers as graphic and product designer, early childhood education and child development specialist (Montessori Method/Head Start).
What profession, other than your own, would you like to attempt?
I’ve pretty much done all the professions. I would like more time to do art again, but not necessarily professionally.
What is your favorite quote?
“I wish I could show you when you are lonely or in the darkness the astonishing light of your own being.” Hafiz
What is your preferred form of creative expression?
Journaling with drawing (especially to music) and collage and writing, including my nondominant hand.
What is your favorite movie, song, and work of art?
An American in Paris, Love is Here to Stay and Blackbird, anything by Van Gogh (especially his last painting of the birds in a field)
Who do you admire most?
The Parkland, Florida kids who turned grief into activism after the shooting at their school
Over the course of your life, what is an issue with which you have repeatedly struggled?
Health
In childhood, who was your celebrity crush?
Too many to recall. I was raised in the Hollywood film and tv industries. I guess the first was Glenn Ford.
What historical figure would you most like to meet?
Anais Nin
What natural gift or ability would you most like to possess?
Photographic memory
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Three – my family (two daughters, four grandsons, and six great-grand kids), my books (26 and counting), my training program.
What quality do you admire most in a person?
Creativity and compassion
What is something you would like to learn about?
People I admire who have made a difference (their stories in biographies, autobiographies, films, etc.)
What do you wish more people knew about you?
The struggles and not just the accomplishments. In my books, I share some of the struggles that led to the work I do.
What is your idea of success?
Doing what you love and loving what you do for a living.
What would you like people to say about you when you’re gone?
Her methods changed my life for the better.
A Registered Art Therapist and pioneer in Expressive Arts Therapies, Lucia conducts workshops and professional certification training in her innovative methods, which are used worldwide in education, therapy, and life coaching. Her texts and workbooks are used in courses on art therapy, psychology, creative writing, and art. Her techniques are used in cancer support groups, schools (K-12), memory care centers, and programs for veterans. Her books have been translated into 20 languages.
