Art Therapy

Art therapy is a combination of psychotherapy and the use of art in a creative process of self-expression. With an art therapist you start a dialogue about the art you created, which helps you process, reflect on, and uncover thoughts, feelings, and experiences that may otherwise be difficult to verbalize.

Creating art by itself is a fun and therapeutic process, but the practice of art therapy takes this a step further. The therapist designs a comforting, supportive, and caring environment for you to explore your mental canvas. With materials and tools, the therapist guides you into the present moment and gives you the space to transform your thoughts and emotions into artworks that you can touch, see, and feel.

Changes occur during the process of physical involvement with the materials, through the making of a significant art object, and through communication with the therapist via the art object. In art making, individuals are able to represent thoughts or feeling through an image and therefore make it more tangible and have a permanent record of their experiences. In creating an artwork, conflict, fear, or trauma is re-experienced, resolved, and overcome. This allows for them to better connect with others. In addition, physical and psychological skills are learned. A by-product of working in art is that individuals have a stronger sense of who they are and what they are capable of achieving in the world as they learn to be creative and expressive.

Previous art experience is unnecessary as the focus is on personal expression.