What is Art Therapy?
Creativity and healing are rooted in the same movement towards balance, they each strive to be in tune with the flow of life, in connection with the environment, to find meaning, to increase the life energy. Transformation is inherent in both therapy and the creative process. Both require trust, risk, courage, love, hope, faith, sensory and emotional expression.
The arts offer an indispensable space of freedom, pleasure, safety, relaxation and sincerity in which we can shape and explore our questions and themes, the familiar and the unknown, and increase our awareness and capability.
The use of the arts is not intended to create an aesthetic product but to support people in their expression, to overcome difficulties and transform themselves, to shape and make sense of their world, to help them live in peace with what is.
Art therapy uses phenomenological approach – it works with whatever unfolds in a session, gives emotional freedom and supports the coping mechanisms of individuals. It uses the art product (a painting, a dance, a theatre act, a text, clay, etc.) to give a possibility to look at a topic from a distance, and at the same time serves as a “container” for the emotional process supporting a transformation. This is an approach accustomed to the individual needs of each client, activating their resources and using low-skills but high sensitivity to bring awareness.
No previous experience is required. One might gain some artistic skills in the process of art therapy, but does not need to have any skills. The art process is used as a reflection, discovery and transformation.
How it works
Art therapy uses the creative process and the artistic product for therapeutic purposes. Traditional methods of psychotherapy and counseling are used, such as sharing, research, feedback, as well as non-verbal ways of expression through various art modalities: drawing, sculpting, music, movement, gesture, theater, poetry.
Art therapy is a process that includes the qualities of authenticity, wholeness, beauty, and playfulness. It’s a means to explore, to find meaning, to have a material which serves the process of contemplation and self-awareness.
We use imagination as a way to find alternative solutions, to go “away” from our topics, so when we return, to see the issue with a new understanding and increased energy. Art helps us to step where we have not dared to go before in a careful, gentle and resource-oriented way.
If we feel isolated, detached from ourselves and unable to cope with a particular life situation, art therapy provides a safe framework for both children and adults alike, to explore, shape and find new ways of being. We are changing in and along with the process of creativity.
Art therapy supports our natural ability to take steps towards wholeness and resourcefulness, and make the necessary steps in our lives, including the whole body and all of the senses by tapping into the inherent creativity in us.
Art therapy is used in many different personal and business themes:
- Self-discovery
- Boost energy levels
- Inspiration and motivation
- Find a solution / brainstorming
- Investigate a problem of unclear origin
- Transform self-sabotage / limiting belief / unhealthy habit
- Depression, low self-esteem, communication problems
- Sleeping problems
- Difficult relationships
- Times of crisis (divorce, separation, loss)
Who can benefit from Art Therapy?
Art is life, and life is art. There are no limits of any kind in this type of work. All kinds of topics, personal and business, can be explored through this creative approach.
It is also suitable for children of all ages – from the youngest (2-3 years) to adolescents. Art therapy is the easiest way for children to access and transform their inner world. The sessions are mostly based on practical exercises (creative tasks) that build up skills, develop motor abilities, increase their imagination, and support their social- and emotional maturing.