Art Therapy in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
A process of using art-making as a means of self-expression and communication
Art Therapy is the process of using art-making as a means of self-expression and communication. Art Therapy can lead to increased self-awareness, creativity, discovery and nourishment.
What is art therapy?
Art Therapy is different than merely using art as a part of therapy (which can also be powerful and helpful!). Rather, Art Therapists receive specialized training in how to utilize the process and product of art making as a tool to assess and treat a variety of emotional, relational, and behavioral challenges. When a person feels limited in identifying solutions to their challenges through merely talking, art provides an alternative means of expression and creativity and can tap into the parts of the brain that hold deeper truths and wisdom.
On a neurobiological level, our deepest traumas and emotions are not stored in our prefrontal cortex, the part of our brain that processes through words- sometimes considered our “left brain”. Instead, our deepest emotions and traumas are stored in our limbic system and brainstem, the parts of our brain that processes through image, metaphor, and movement. Art provides a powerful pathway towards emotional awareness, expression, and release, often through tapping into the parts of our emotions and experiences that lie in our unconscious minds, beyond the world of words–otherwise known as our “right brain”.
What does an art therapy session look like?
In session, this might look like noticing the feelings and memories that arise when kneading clay or scribbling with different colored crayons. The art therapist may support a client in exploring the possible meaning of their impulse towards more “messy” or “clean” art materials, and may invite the client to stretch outside of their comfort zone in this area, noticing the thoughts and feelings that arise when using finger paint or other types of art materials that they may not typically gravitate towards. In doing so, new parts of self can be discovered, and clients may gain deeper insight into the ways they show up in the world and their preconceived ideas of themselves. Art therapy provides clients with an opportunity to “try on” different ways of being through engaging with different art materials in different ways.
There is absolutely no need to consider oneself artistic or artistically talented in order to benefit from art therapy.
The power of art therapy is not in the subjective quality of what is produced, but rather in the mindful exploration of the emotions, memories, and thoughts that arise during the process of art making.
Often times, through art making, we can contact parts of ourselves and experiences that may take years to access through simply talking. As they say– “A picture is worth a thousand words.” To read more about how art therapy can support you in your healing process, check out our blogs: Art Therapy in Philadelphia: What it is and How it Can Help and Unleashing the Transformative Potential of Art Therapy: Nurturing Self-Expression and Facilitating Trauma Recovery