How does healing work in art therapy?

Why is art therapy beneficial, and how does it work? In art therapy we use art materials to bring change and growth as a person’s issues are worked through. The aim of art therapy is psychological or emotional healing; a return to good health, wellbeing and vitality in a person’s life. ​

A brief history of Art Therapy
When did art therapy begin? Art therapy is an established field in mental health:

• Freud established the importance of the unconscious and dreams;
• Jung encouraged visual expression of inner experiences (‘active imagination’);
• Klein moved the focus of psychoanalysis to relationships;
• Winnicott identified the child’s recognition of symbol, potential space, transitional objects, and the use of play and creativity in development;
• Naumburg established art therapy as a distinct field and referred to art images as ‘symbolic speech’;
• Kramer used art making to relieve trauma based on Freud’s concept of sublimation, where energy is diverted away from unwanted impulses and towards positive experience;
• Adamson, working in a psychiatric hospital art studio, believed that art processes were intrinsically healing;
• McNiff argues that art making activates creative energy, which is life-affirming and revitalizing; ‘both art and healing … continuously convert one thing into something else’;
• Hyland-Moon describes a collaborative open studio approach in which the art therapist approaches the process as an artist and storyteller, providing a studio environment for the person to freely experience the space and materials;
• Allen explains ‘the images that spontaneously emerge in engaged art making form a bridge between inner and outer, between conscious and unconscious, and between self, others, and the world’.

 
The creative process
Art making is connected to the intrinsic human need to play. Our ‘humanness’ has been the subject matter and reason for the arts throughout history. The process of art making, or ‘making special’ involves deep and strong emotions and appeals to our thoughts and senses. Art transcends cultural boundaries and is a natural part of being human.
 
In art therapy there is often the sense of being immersed in the art process, a feeling of creative flow; there is likely to be spontaneity, imperfection and acceptance. The art therapist may be witness, facilitator, counsellor and guide.
 
The talking process
In therapy, the person is invited to talk about the artwork so they can uncover what it means to them and gain insight. Talking alone may be inadequate to explain the richness of imagery and imagination, so to gain the most benefit from the person’s art making the art therapist brings curiosity about all the elements of materials, perception, place, body and the art process. Talking about the artwork allows clarity and avoids assumptions and interpretations being made.
 
The experience of becoming
In philosophy, the idea of ‘becoming’, the ‘passage between points’, elevates the experience of becoming above the potential of the start and end points. To use a well-worn phrase, it's about the 'journey'. 'Becoming’ is central to a holistic approach in art therapy. Art therapists are sensitive to the person’s needs, embracing the value of the process and the relationship between therapist, the person and their artwork, supporting and participating in their growth. The focus is on belonging and connection between people. 
 
How do we use art therapy to heal?
Healing occurs through the relationship between the person and their environment. In art therapy, the experience of being in the space, sensing, perceiving, physically handling art materials and interacting with others are essential elements of the healing process. Healing is in the entire experience of art making and in the space between our self and the world.

Experience art therapy for yourself
​You can make an appointment here and I look forward to supporting your healing journey.

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