What is Art Therapy?
Art therapy is the use of some kind of art-making for the purposes of improving mental and emotional wellbeing. We’re used to viewing art in terms of its aesthetic properties, but it has a different purpose in the context of art therapy. When used in therapy, art is about process and communication.
How does it help people?
Art therapy can help people in many ways, including the following:
Express feelings and share life experiences
Build confidence and support authenticity through the creative process
Envision goals
Reprocess traumas and painful memories
Increase self-awareness
Explore complex issues from a place of curiosity
Increase frustration tolerance
Improve adaptive self-soothing skills
What is unique about art therapy in comparison to traditional psychotherapy?
Freedom
The experiences and feelings that make us feel stuck in life are often complex. Words can be limiting in many ways – forcing things into a linear format that don’t feel that way, and compelling us to choose from a set vocabulary. Art is roomy and free, and sometimes that’s exactly what is needed to express feelings.
Accessing Deep Layers
Taking expression beyond the verbal realm also helps people access deep issues quickly. Because we are accustomed to using words all day every day, many of us have grown adept at using them automatically to evade topics that make us feel emotionally vulnerable. This means that if an art therapy client does a collage that explores a relationship challenge he is having, the art can open up parts of the challenge that he wasn’t consciously aware of.
The Best of Both Worlds
The great thing about working with most art therapists in the US is that you won’t have to choose between art therapy and psychotherapy – Registered Art Therapists and Board Certified Art Therapists are also required to complete training and licensure in a counseling profession, so we can provide talk therapy in addition to art therapy.
What kind of person is a good fit for art therapy?
Art therapy can benefit almost anyone: Children, adolescents, adults, couples, families, or groups. Because there is a multitude of choice about type of art materials and type of activity that will be used with any individual or group, a trained art therapist can customize the art therapy process to suit the needs, preferences, interests and goals of the person or people in the room. The only requirement is that a person is open-minded to giving the process a try.
What is an art therapy session like?
Art therapy sessions are different depending on the setting and the art therapist. The descriptions below characterize my personal style of practicing art therapy, which may be different from the way other art therapists work.
Individual Art Therapy
In individual art therapy sessions, you will be in a private space with your therapist, and the art activity you do will be something personal to you. Your therapist might suggest a project or material based on something that comes up in discussion, or you might know what you want to work on. There are many materials available, and you will have a strong voice in deciding what art you make and in figuring out the meaning of your art.
If you’re interested in individual art therapy, visit One Heart Counseling Center, with offices in Costa Mesa and Manhattan Beach, CA. For other locations, check out AATA’s Art Therapist Locator.
Group Art Therapy
In art therapy groups, there will often be more structure so that everyone stays on the same page. There may be a topic set at the start of group, and there might be specific materials to use. The topics will be inspired by the treatment focus. For example, if the group is set in a substance use treatment program, art activities will be designed to help participants explore issues central to entering recovery.
If you think an art therapy group could be a good fit for your treatment program or agency, get in touch here.