Art Therapy
What is art therapy
Art therapy is a form of psychotherapeutic mechanism aimed at providing an opportunity for addressing the problem of intense emotions which sometimes become very hard for individuals, their family members and friends to handle. Art therapy provides the most supportive environment for dealing with such painful feelings and thoughts experienced by the individuals by applying a wide range of artistic materials such as clay, collage, paints or batik and themselves to creatively illustrate visual representations of feelings and thoughts. Although art therapy works well as an individual activity, it has been found to work most promising when done in groups.
The individuals who are referred to art therapists in most cases are those who have lost touch with their feelings and often find it difficult to express their feelings verbally. The cause of individuals losing their feeling is varied it can be caused after a moment of frightening, emotional blocking or confusion. It is therefore the role of an art therapist to wipe away these moments from the client. Art therapy can be applicable for managers and staff who are under pressure. It can also be used to assist people who are in constant stress or sometimes are overworked. Art therapy is also convenient for people with mental health problems and for people who have serious learning problems. Particularly the children who often have problems conforming with personal problems in schools or at their homes, art therapy can be highly beneficial in helping solve this menacem. A lot of interest can be developed by people who are ready to learn and explore concepts around their lives. People choose to study art therapy so that they may understand the phenomena of emotional problems that afflict the people in their place of living. It is pretty simple for a client to given art therapy. The client does not require any skill in making the arts. There is absolutely no artistic experience or skills required in art therapy. The art therapist has a role of providing the guidance from the first step to the last one until the client feels he is freed from the emotional menace.Individual Art Therapist Why one should invest in learning art therapy
Individuals can decide to learn art therapy and apply it on a personal level. The knowledge gained for the training can be used in exploring the inner issues of life. In fact, it is a safe way of expressing sensitive and strong feelings which is in most times very hard to express. Art therapy enhances communication between two individuals, professional teams or groups (John, 2007). Art therapy can be used to explore the aspect of change. For people experiencing problems in communication, either written or verbal, art therapy can serve an important pathway to help these individuals get away with the problem. Professional managers in any venerable community should embrace art therapy to instill the required confidence and enhance life changes in the people they have responsibility for.The art therapy client
The perception towards the therapy received during treatment is satisfactory. Most clients get answers to their problems and their emotions which are intensified due to various life issues are settled. Some client have the same opinion that art therapy is not necessarily about being an artist, rather it is about utilizing the visual symbols in exploring emotions and feelings. Art therapy, to the majority, is about seeing the feelings and making them very visible to them. They can read their feeling through art therapy. The expressions of some clients talk of art therapy to be a source of a natural beauty which is free to grow and also an experience which can be extended or a space that is fun to have. Clients find it fun and a safe haven to be in. art therapy is satisfying to most clients who seek the treatment. They generally agree that in art therapy, it is the process in the treatment which is important and not the product itself (Kalmanowitz, Llyoid, 2005). Clients who often seek art therapy agree that in the process of art therapy, they are able to visualize how their minds work. The part of their minds which they say to visualize is that which they are not conscious of.Example of a client
Mr. X has recently taken an early retirement from his job as a college lecturer in a local university. Mr. X main role in the university was to offer lectures in the department of arts. After he retired he went back home to have time with his family. During his retirement period, Mr. X decided to have a picnic with his old loving wife. On their way, the car overturned and rolled several times leaving Mr. X very badly injured in the head. A friend of his, who is an art therapist, attended him as he was recovering in his home after receiving treatment for head injuries. Mr. Xs friend helped him get off the heavy feelings he had after the accident and to date he values and recommends other clients to seek art therapy.Art Therapist
A fully qualified art therapist has a wide understanding of the art processes which include proficiency in verbal communication. They are capable of creating a facilitating and trusting environment where patients are able to express themselves in an open and safe setting. The main aim of an art therapist is to assist his or her client get out of the confusing and often complex emotions which sometimes may prove to be difficult for the client to find an outlet him or herself. It is the role of an art therapist to foster confidence and self awareness in their patients (Kaplan, 2007). In fact, it is part of the art therapist role to craft ways of working with his or her patients in diverse settings. In cases where the client cannot speak, the artwork provides a valuable means of communication.The Art
The main purpose of art therapy is to maintain and improve the emotional and mental health of individuals suffering from intense emotions. There are other forms of therapies which utilize the performing arts for the purposes of expressions. However, art therapy basically utilizes paintings, drawings, photography and sculpture or other forms of expressions of the visual arts. This is the reason why art therapists are trained to recognize metaphors and non verbal symbols which are only communicated in a creative process. These symbols and metaphors used might be very hard to be communicated or expressed in words or in other forms of modalities (Gerry, 2005).
The art therapists assist their clients to discover the underlying feelings and thoughts which are being communicated during the process of art therapy and what the artwork means to them. Through this assistance, the clients will gain the judgment and the insight in addition to better understanding of oneself and the various ways to relate to the people such as family members, friends and anyone around them. Art making has been perceived as an opportunity to better express oneself in an imaginative, authentic and spontaneous way which provides an experience to have personal fulfillment
Art therapy exclusively utilizes art media as the sole source of communication although it is not necessary that clients referred to art therapists to have prior experience in art skills since the art therapist is not mainly concerned with drawing a diagnostic or aesthetic assessment of the image of the client. The primary role of art therapists is to create an enabling setting for the client to effect growth and change on a personal basis by using art materials in the most facilitating and safe environment.
An art therapist bases his or her services of healing by considering the perceptions, imagination and feelings. The practice of art therapy may require prior learning of skills and techniques although much of the emphasis is based on the development and expression of images which come inside the client rather than those that are seen by the client in the outside world. Some traditional classes of artwork may require students to make drawings or paintings from imaginations in art therapy (Langan, 2005). However, the inner world of images, thoughts, feelings and ideas are also important to the experience of the learners in a class of artwork.
The term therapy comes from a Greek word, therapeia meaning to be conscientious to. In art therapy, a skilled professional will attend to the individual making the art. The person giving these guidelines plays an important role in the process of art therapy. The supportive relationship has to be maintained along the process so that the client can find the meaning along the way through this healthy relationship. Another most important part in the process of providing art therapy is the individual attendance to his personal art making process and also providing a personal meaning to the art. This implies that an art therapy will ensure that the client finds it easier to find a story, meaning or the whole description of the art. It has been seen in most cases that very few art therapies fully rely on the individual participation. It is the duty of the art therapist to facilitate the exploration of the clients of the narratives and materials about the art products which are created during the process of art therapy.Art-Based Assessments The general practitioners working in hospitals will require examine the conditions of the patients in order to know the treatment or correct prescription. Similarly, art therapists and allied professionals take an analysis of the client prior to giving therapies. The difference between art therapies and general practitioners is that the former group takes use of art based assessment to obtain complete evaluation of the cognitive, emotional and developmental conditions. A number of psychological analyses take significant application of art making to study various aspects of mental functioning. All the qualified art therapists and allied professionals are highly trained to interpret and administer these forms of assessment which mostly rely on the simple directive and a more standardized range of art materials (Evans, Dubowski, 2001).a) The Diagnostic Drawing Series or DDS
DDS is a type of assessment which is correlated with the diagnosis of main disorders related to psychiatry. In the assessment a three drawing series is involved which most mental healthcare professionals put into application in identifying the problem of emotions in their clients. The first part of the assessment involve the mental healthcare professional or art therapist asking the client to sketch any drawing by using pastels of colored chalks on a piece of paper. The next part involves the clients being asked to draw a tree and in the third and the final part, the client is asked to illustrate by drawing lines, shapes or colors on how they are feeling.b) The Mandala Assessment Research Instrument (MARI)
Another example of assessment is the use of a procedure called, The Mandala Assessment Research Instrument (MARI). Here, a person is often asked to choose a card usually from a deck which has different mandalas. The designs are usually enclosed in the geometric shape and the person must choose a given color from the set of colored deck. The person receiving the therapy is then asked to draw the mandala from the card he chooses with an oil pastel which can be any color of his choice (Weber, 2009). This procedure involves the artist who is asked to give explanation on the meanings or experiences which are related to the mandala which the client drew. The assessment is based on the beliefs of seeing a recurring correlation between the shapes, images and patterns that the client draws and the artists personality. The assessment test is aimed to assess and provide clues to the psychological progression of the individual needing the therapy and his current psychological condition.c) House-Tree-Person (HTP)
In this form of assessment the patient is asked to make a drawing of three distinct images. The images can be a house, a person or a tree. After the patient is done with the drawings, the art therapist will then ask the patient questions such as, the age of the person in his drawing, what the person is doing in the drawing, what are the building materials of the house the patient has just drawn, or what the weather is like in the drawn picture. This kind of assessment is usually done either through achromatic or chromatic means where colored lead pencils can be used to make illustrations. Colored markers can also be used to make such illustrations. The projective assessment of the person, the house or the tree in the drawing made by the patient represent various aspects of the artist and the manner the artist feels about herself or himself.d) Road drawing
In road drawing the assessment and any intervention in providing therapeutic services, the patient is asked to make a drawing of a road. This type of assessment is a projected one which tens to create various graphic representations of the individuals path of life. This kind of drawing has the capability of eliciting spontaneous imagery that indicates the origin of the patient, the history of the patient and his or her processes. The road represents the patients life experiences to the present and the intended future. All these derivative concepts are drawn from a simple picture (Kaplan, 2007). Art therapy and other forms of psychological therapy
This form of psychotherapy requires that a healthy relationship is built between the client and the therapist. It should be noted that art therapy is quite different from other forms of psychological therapies which involve two way processes. Contrary to such other forms of psychological therapy, art therapy involves three major processes the client, the therapist and the artifacts or images created. This type of therapy, unlike other psychological therapies provide the clients with the opportunity to express and communicate their feeling which is integral to the people who may find it difficult for expressing their feelings and thought in a verbal way.Where to find art therapy services
The art therapists have a sound mastery of the art processes and the general knowledge of therapeutic practice in working with both individuals and groups. They may carry out their services in residential places or community based environments. These settings which may have art therapists are children and family centres, prison service facilities, palliative care and bereavement services, adult mental health facilities and centres involved in helping individuals with learning disabilities. The art therapists can be found in hospitals and especially in units managing trauma and psychotherapeutic departments. In drug and alcohol departments, art therapists play an important role in helping the afflicted individual to recover from their intense emotions (Gerry, 2005). It is a growing scenario that art therapists are getting a great position in forensic services. Additionally, art therapists have been found to be important in caring for patients who have experienced serious head injuries and stroke.
The main employers of art therapists include the National Health Service, Prison Service, Education Service, private hospitals, the Social Service, mental health projects and various charity organizations. Art therapists can also serve as psychiatrists in special groups of adults, adolescents, children and also the aged people.Training in Art Therapy program Requirements It is not very easy to carry out the tasks of an art therapist. These important professions in our society face challenging scenarios and therefore require the culturing of special sensitivity and skills to better perform their integral function in helping individuals with intense emotions. The main requirement for one to be admitted to the study of art therapy is maturity and flexibility. In some colleges which offer a Masters Degree program in Art Therapy, the course is designed to comprise of experimental and theoretical aspects of art therapy provision. This course takes two academic years (full time) or three academic years (Part time). It is important for the applicants to have a first degree in arts although other degrees obtained in undergraduates can be considered (Withrow, 2004). It may also require that prior to joining a program in Art Therapy, the students should have a working experience in the field of healthcare, social care or education industry. Standards and Professional Body of Art Therapists Owing to its diversity in profession, art therapists should uphold the standards set by the professional bodies in various states. It is important that all the practicing art therapists register themselves with the professional bodies existing in their individual states. The same applies to professions in the field of Drama and Music Therapy. Majority of states for instance in the UK, art therapists and Drama and Music therapists register themselves with the Health Professions Council.
One of the most important art therapy professional bodies in the UK is the British Association of Art Therapists (BAAT). BAAT is an organization in the UK which brings all the art therapists together in sharing knowledge and skills concerning the area of art therapy. BAAT has individual Code of Ethics of Professional Practice which gives a guideline on how the practice of art therapy should be carried out by the professionals. The Association comprises of twenty regional groups with both the international and the European sections. The Association works to maintain an inclusive directory of all qualified art therapists and strives to promote the practice of art therapy in the whole region of the UK. The British Association of Art Therapists is a dynamic organization and provides the right tools for art therapy profession which is ever growing and expanding terms of professionalism.
Another important professional body is the American Art Therapy Association (AATA). This is an organization with diverse, creative and engaged professionals who are dedicated to the philosophy that the creative process of art modeling is fully life enhancing and has a potential healing capacity. The association has a culture of inclusion which combines people from all backgrounds regardless to color or class. The main moving spirit of the association is being open to the new expressions and concepts which continue to expand the efficacy of art therapy as used in healing process (Evans, Dubowski, 2001). The association serves the general public and its members by enhancing professional standards competence and increasing the development of knowledge in the field of art therapy. There are abut 5,000 members represented by the association in the United States and about 36 states and Regional Chapters that hold meetings and activities which promote the art therapy at local levels.Code of Ethics
Every profession has the guiding principle on the manner at which the profession should be practiced. Art therapy being a profession requires the code of ethics in order for the members to act according to the requirements of the society. Generally requires the application of art to provide therapeutic services. Both the art therapists and psychotherapists have standard behaviors in the practice of their profession. It is required that art therapists act according to the standards set in their individual countries and the international settings (Langan, 2005). In some situations, art therapists are responsible for any crime they commit relative to breaching of the codes set under their professional ethics. Through the guideline given in these codes, the professionalism in the field of art therapy is highly maintained and patients are likely to have very satisfactory services.
Generally, art therapy is the most natural way of providing solutions to people who have problems of communication and can not freely interact with their members of the family, their friends or the people around them. It is with this great concern that governments and other bodies have set out mechanism to assist these kinds of individuals to obtain the care they need by increasing awareness of art therapy. It should be noted that art therapy is not a standalone in complex situations like head injuries. More medical procedures are required and art therapy seems to provide a synergistic mechanism to solve the problem faced by the patient.
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