Understanding Art Therapy

A great way to get the gist of art therapy is to compare it to a Swiss Army Knife. Yep- I am serious!

Art therapy is a therapeutic approach that uses art and all its diversity as a tool for insight, development and support.

The Swiss Army Knife was first produced in 1890 and has been perfected and credited ever since, it is now produced by specialised production. Art therapy draws on theory and research and is practised by registered and trained therapists (I have a Master of art therapy)

There are 38 functions of the Swiss Army knife and countless ways to apply them. Art therapy functions in various individual, community and clinical settings. It has hundreds of different applications. Art therapy can be relaxing and process based art making or pointy end psychotherapy. Here at Sunflower and Ivy we do a variety of art based classes, emotional resilience workshops and more.

Lived your whole life without a Swiss Army Knife? You can do the same with art therapy but both can change your life experience. Trust me.

In a Swiss Army Knife all the parts you see exist separately in the world. The magic comes with how they are folded together. It is the same with art therapy, the integration of art materials, art making and a supportive therapist gives it it’s power and potential.

Just as you would check where your Swiss Army Knife is made, check where art therapists are trained and their experience. A swiss army knife can help you survive but you won’t survive by merely having one. Art therapy can support healing and growth, but it shouldn’t be advertised as a heal-all.

Now you get the gist, lets dig a little deeper into art therapy. Children exemplify how art can assist us to process, make sense and honour our experiences through physical expression. Imagine a young girl who idealises everything. Everything is perfect; an illusion of bubbly fun. But below the surface lies the emotional consequences of many unnamed trauma’s and unsavoury experiences. She cannot speak of these feelings but they explode out in aggressive outbursts at school. In an early therapy session this young girl creates a paper cat. At first he is beautifully adorned. But over the course of therapy as Mr Cat begins to speak, purr, yell and demand, he gets sick, ugly, turns purple, cries and dies and then is reborn several times over until he is miss-matched jumble of colours and tatty paper. The girl expresses many of the things she cannot speak about herself through Mr Cat. He becomes her voice when she is unable to find her own. For many children art therapy goes hand in hand with play.

Sometimes I get asked if art therapy is more successful with children. But if there is a bias, it is only because children have not been fully molded by a society where verbalisation is favoured over all else. Our innate quality as humans is to make sense of our experiences through symbolism, metaphor and story.

Different types of art therapy
The Mr Cats of the world may not always be easily conjured. Thankfully art therapy has multiple forms and styles, varying between therapists and shaped by various schools of thought, theories and research. My recommendation for anyone wanting to try art therapy is the same for any health practitioner; shop around to find the right fit. All art therapists are trained counsellors so on any given day if you want to just chat, they can chat. But they also have a wealth of creative ways of reflecting, problem solving and forming that ever so important therapeutic relationship. For those of us that haven’t been terrified into thinking a pencil mark must be withheld unless we are the next Picasso, art materials can offer a welcome third party into the room. An art therapy session may involve collaging, drawing, painting, scribbling, exploring senses and materials, art based games, imaginative play or stories and a whole range of other things. It may simply be a quiet space for you to create and reflect.

In cases of trauma, disability and oppression the benefits of art therapy may be more easily observed. But it can also be helpful for a range of mental health, existential, relational and environmental difficulties. Imagine a lady who enters into art therapy complaining of anxiety, fatigue and failure. She has high expectations of herself and her self criticism has little mercy. The lady states that she only draws in lead pencil and her drawings are refined, erased and redone to perfection. As the art therapist gently explores and tugs at the origins of the ladies self-doubt and criticism through conversation, she encourages her to explore other art materials and processes. Despite only making abstract mark with crayons, the lady squirms with the discomfort of mess and fights the urge to throw it immediately in the bin. Can you see the parallel process here, that art materials can be used to gently and gradually challenge and reflect the lady’s difficulties? With guided support art based processes can, over time, become a conversation with the self.

In summary art therapy is adaptable to a range of settings and issues, regardless of whether imagery is ready or able to be made. ANZACATA  summarises that “art therapy can encourage clients to  express feelings that may be difficult to verbalise, explore imagination and creativity, develop healthy coping skills, improve self esteem and confidence, identify issues and concerns, increase communication skills, improve motor skills and communication and identify blocks to emotional expression”.

So whilst some days I may feel like I can make my wealth from the question “what is art therapy” it is becoming more widely practiced in Australia. Art therapy exists the world over and is utilised in a vast range of community and clinical settings. In its simplest form art offers a refuge and has done so in the homes and journals of many, many individuals for centuries. If you want to find out more about art therapy in Australia and it’s effectiveness take a look at the ANZATA website; the professional body for art therapy in Australia, New Zealand and Singapore. They also have a directory of registered art therapists.