What is Art Therapy

Discovering Healing Through Creativity: An Introduction to Art Therapy

Like all word explanations begin, let’s take the core definition from the American Art Therapy Association:

“Art therapy is an integrative mental health profession that combines knowledge and understanding of human development and psychological theories and techniques with visual arts and the creative process to provide a unique approach for helping clients improve psychological health, cognitive abilities, and sensory-motor functions. Art therapists use art media, and often the verbal processing of produced imagery, to help people resolve conflicts and problems, develop interpersonal skills, manage behavior, reduce stress, increase self-esteem and self-awareness, and achieve insight.

Art therapy has the unique ability to unlock emotional expression by facilitating non-verbal communication. This is especially useful in cases where traditional psychotherapy has been ineffectual. Art and art making are inherently perceptually and sensory based and involve the brain and the body in ways that verbal language does not. Art therapy provides an alternative means of communicating for those who cannot find the words to express anxiety, pain or emotions as a result of trauma, combat, physical abuse, loss of brain function, depression, and other debilitating health conditions.

Although use of visual imagery is the foundational tenet of art therapy, art therapists uniquely draw from multiple theoretical approaches in their understanding, design, and implementation of treatment. Art therapists understand the science of imagery and the therapeutic potentials of color, texture, and various art media and how these affect a wide range of potential clients and personalities. Rigorous clinical training in working with individuals, families, and groups prepare art therapists to make parallel assessments of clients’ general psychological disposition and how art as a process is likely to moderate conditions and corresponding behavior. Recognizing the ability of art and art-making to reveal thoughts and feelings, and knowledge and skill to safely manage the reactions they may evoke, are competencies that define art therapy as a profession.”

Let’s Define:

If that was too clinical of a definition to fully comprehend, let me break it down for you in a simpler manner.

Art therapy is a modality for self exploration through the duality of art and psychology. It’s essentially a form of therapy that utilizes both verbal and non-verbal communication. Although semantics and language in general has revolutionized the way we converse, there are some things that are easier to express through non-verbal communication. 

Misconceptions:

There are two main misconceptions that are often assumed when one hears about art therapy for the first time:

1) “I have to be good art to do art therapy, right?”

2) “Oh so you work with autistic and/or those with psychological disorders, right?”

NO. This is absolutely false!

While art therapy uses art with an assortment of art mediums, it has nothing to do with your artistic abilities. In fact, I found it quite difficulty to separate my fine art curriculum with my art therapy curriculum. Fine art focuses on the physical composition like color, line, contrast, form, rhythm, values, etc. Art therapy isn’t concerned about the particular way you execute these elements, but is concerned about the why and the process.

For example, an art teacher will show you how to use lines, let you make the art, and critique you afterwards on how you can strengthen your work. An art therapist will show you what materials are available to you, observe how you approach the materials, and may (or may not) ask you what the process was like and if any particular emotions or thoughts came about. [There are a lot of other components to each the fine arts and art therapy, but this is just a quick example.]

So everyone can partake in an art therapy session as long as its with a licensed art therapist – if you ever do art by yourself or in a group without an art therapist, it is called “therapeutic art,” not art therapy.

Although this focuses on art therapy through art mediums, there are tons of different forms of creative art therapy including writing, music, dance/movement, drama, & etc.