What is Art Therapy? (And is it just for kids?)
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Psssst!* There's a YouTube Video down below if reading isn't your thing ;)
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We need to connect with our inner world.
(Sometimes, pretty desperately)
We need to process what we've experienced, experientially.
When we do this, we receive gifts:
Authenticity, Renewal & Soulfulness.
(Sometimes, pretty desperately)
We need to process what we've experienced, experientially.
When we do this, we receive gifts:
Authenticity, Renewal & Soulfulness.
This isn't paint-by-number.
Who you are informs the process & product at The Art Therapy Studio.
Who you are informs the process & product at The Art Therapy Studio.
To participate in and benefit from Art Therapy no artistic skills are needed.
You work at your own pace to build skills & comfort with the materials over time.
(Yes, even you, Mr. 'I can't draw a stick figure.')
You work at your own pace to build skills & comfort with the materials over time.
(Yes, even you, Mr. 'I can't draw a stick figure.')
Art is a verb, not a noun.
To be human is to make & to imbue things with meaning. It's not something that's relegated to a talented few! As long as we've been a species, we've translated our experiences through expression. You are part of this linage. You can explore, capture & work with your experiences via your own hands and imagery. You can make things that give you that inner yell of, "Yes! It's just like that!" (like when you find the perfect meme. but minus all the screen time scrolling. plus the pride and satisfaction that you actually MADE this thing & it captures what you're feeling so accurately. even if it's about a bunch of hard, yucky feelings & looks pretty ugly, you'll love looking at it and want to put it on your fridge. Like when you were little & you loved everything you made, before school taught you how 'art' is 'supposed to look,' but better. :) The imagery you make can hold your confusing, complex, contradictory experiences all at once & leave you with the satisfaction of expression when words have failed. AND It can hold what works, too! |
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I LOVE ART THERAPY & Believe you will, too. I'd be honored to work with you.
*Note: This video shows my old office, not my new one! :)
Still Curious? Good.
The Ithaca Voice:
At Art Therapy Studio, Ithacans create to cope with mental illness, stress
Open Art Hive: A FREE inclusive community art studio.
Currently meeting twice a Month at Ithaca Generator through April 2020.
Creativity, Happiness and Your Own Two Hands:
How Meaningful Hand Use Enhances Well-Being.
Carrie Barron, M.D. in The Creativity Cure
The American Art Therapy Association
Suggested Reading
The Dark Side of the Light Chasers: Reclaiming your Power, Creativity, Brilliance and Dreams. By Debbie Ford
(A book you'll return to again & again. I've had mine for over 20 years!)
Make it Mighty Ugly: Exercises & Advice for Getting Creative Even When it Ain't Pretty. By Kim Piper Werker
No More Secondhand Art: Awakening the Artist Within. By Peter London
(I can not get enough of this book. It's chocked full of unexpected wisdom.)
The Soul's Palette: Drawing on Art's Transformative Powers for Health & Well-Being. By Cathy Malchiodi
(Cathy is an absolute Giant of the Art Therapy world. She's worked with The Department of Defense (!) on best practice for trauma survivors.)
The 12 Secrets of Highly Creative Women: A Portable Mentor
& The 12 Secrets of Highly Creative Women Journal. By Gail McMeekin
(You will LOVE these.)