“Thirty years of creativity, collaboration, and transformation”
This summer, we celebrated the 30th anniversary of the European Graduate School. Once again, students and faculty from across the globe gathered beneath the Alps, where the air is thin, crisp, and alive with possibility. The car-free village of Saas-Fee, nestled just below the tree line, was filled with familiar faces, new voices, and the spirit of community that defines EGS.
Towering above us, the snow-capped Alps stretched skyward like spears of light, gathering clouds by day and scattering starlight by night. When I first arrived at Saas-Fee, I missed the horizon of my California coast. Now, after nearly three decades, I welcome the protective embrace of these mountains. Under their watchful presence, the dark skies and the sweeping arc of the Milky Way remind us of the vastness of creation—and of our place within it.
The anniversary was a joyful occasion, filled with music, dance, and celebration. I had the honor of teaching a Presence and Process class, along with the second-year doctoral seminar, where students shared and shaped their summer projects. The energy was both festive and deeply reflective—a reminder of why we return year after year: to learn, to create, and to belong.
On a personal note, I have been part of EGS for 28 of its 30 years—first as a student, and now as a full professor. EGS has profoundly shaped my life, and I have witnessed it transform the lives of countless others. My colleagues are extraordinary teachers, researchers, and artists, and I feel privileged to share this journey with them. Together, we continue to nurture a community where art, scholarship, and imagination flourish, inspiring new generations of students and shaping the future of our field.
The European Graduate School is more than a program — it is a living community of artists, educators, and researchers dedicated to understanding the transformative role of the arts in healing, education, and social change. Founded in 1996 by Paolo Knill and a pioneering group of faculty, EGS has grown into one of the world’s most respected centers for expressive arts therapy training. Students arrive each summer from North America, Europe, Asia, and beyond, bringing their own cultural lenses to the shared work of creative inquiry beneath the Alps.
What makes EGS extraordinary is not simply its curriculum — though that is extraordinary — but the way it holds the integration of scholarship and artistry. At any given moment, a doctoral student might present a rigorous literature review in the morning and offer a performance piece in the afternoon. This refusal to separate thinking from making, intellect from imagination, is at the very heart of what we teach and who we are as a community.
For EAI’s own graduates and students, the EGS connection is deeply meaningful. Many of our Master’s students complete their degrees in partnership with EGS, enriching their formation with international faculty, the Alpine setting, and the depth of inquiry that comes from gathering minds across continents. At EAI, we have always understood EGS as a partner — not just in curriculum, but in vision: the vision that expressive arts are not peripheral to human flourishing but central to it.
If you feel called toward this work, we invite you to explore EAI’s expressive arts programs — our Master’s, Diploma, and Coaching Certificate tracks all share the spirit and rigor of EGS. And for those new to expressive arts, our introductory workshops offer a first step into this remarkable community — one that has shaped generations of practitioners, educators, and artists across thirty years and counting.
The world needs expressive arts now more than ever. And EGS, at thirty years, is only becoming more itself.
Here’s to the next 30 years of creativity, collaboration, and transformation at EGS!
