Art Therapy

Art therapy is a therapeutic process where a person engages in art-making as a tool for personal discovery and healing. Art has the unique capacity to bypass the thinking mind and access the subconscious, with the power to connect to and reveal the deepest parts of oneself. In art therapy both the creative process and the artwork are seen as important, uncovering aspects of oneself that want to be seen, known, integrated and healed. With the support of an art therapist, one can explore and uncover the deeper meaning of their creative process and artwork. The role of the art therapist is not one of interpreter, but witness and guide, providing support as a one navigates the waters of their internal world.

Since the beginning of time, humans have used art as a tool to express themselves, communicate with each other and connect with the divine. For millennia, Indigenous communities have used art as a form of personal and collective healing. In Western cultures, the collective use of art for healing was largely lost for generations. In the West, art as a form of therapy began in the 1920’s and in 1942 the term art therapy was coined and it was more broadly used as a therapeutic practice for healing.

Like a tree, art therapy has evolved and branched out from the sapling that it once was, reflecting the unique gifts of the art therapist and meeting the ever-changing needs of diverse populations. In its modern form, art therapy can be practiced one-on-one with a therapist, in open studios and closed and open groups to name a few. Many of us long to be truly seen and known and art therapy provides a path to both see and know oneself and to be seen and known by others.