Art therapy
Art therapy is a distinct discipline that incorporates creative methods of expression through visual art media. Art therapy, as a creative arts therapy profession, originated in the fields of art and psychotherapy and may vary in definition. Art therapy encourages creative expression through painting, drawing, or modelling. It may work by providing a person with a safe space to express their feelings and allow them to feel more in control over their life.[1]
There are three main ways that art therapy is employed. The first one is called analytic art therapy. Analytic art therapy is based on the theories that come from analytical psychology, and in more cases, psychoanalysis.[2] Analytic art therapy focuses on the client, the therapist, and the ideas that are transferred between both of them through art.[2] Another way that art therapy is utilized is art psychotherapy. This approach focuses more on the psychotherapists and their analyses of their clients' artwork verbally.[2] The last way art therapy is looked at is through the lens of art as therapy. Some art therapists practicing art as therapy believe that analyzing the client's artwork verbally is not essential, therefore they stress the creation process of the art instead.[2] In all approaches to art therapy, the art therapist's client utilizes paint, paper and pen, clay, sand, fabric, or other media to understand and express their emotions.[2]
Art therapy can be used to help people improve cognitive and sensory motor function, self-esteem, self-awareness, and emotional resilience.[3] It may also aide in resolving conflicts and reduce distress.
Current art therapy includes a vast number of other approaches such as person-centered, cognitive, behavior, Gestalt, narrative, Adlerian, and family. The tenets of art therapy involve humanism, creativity, reconciling emotional conflicts, fostering self-awareness, and personal growth.[4]
Definitions[edit]
There are various definitions of the term art therapy.[19]
The British Association of Art Therapists defines art therapy as: "a form of psychotherapy that uses art media as its primary mode of expression and communication." They also add that "clients who are referred to an art therapist need not have previous experience in art, the art therapist is not primarily concerned with making an aesthetic or diagnostic assessment of the client's image."[20][21]
The American Art Therapy Association defines art therapy as: "an integrative mental health and human services profession that enriches the lives of individuals, families, and communities through active art-making, creative process,[22] applied psychological theory, and human experience within a psychotherapeutic relationship."[23]
Outsider art[edit]
The relation between the fields of art therapy and outsider art has been widely debated. The term art brut was first coined by French artist Jean Dubuffet to describe "art created outside the boundaries of official culture". Dubuffet used the term art brut to focus on artistic practice by insane-asylum patients. The English translation "outsider art" was first used by art critic Roger Cardinal in 1972.[62][63] Outsider art continues to be associated with mentally ill or developmentally disabled individuals.
Both terms have been criticized because of their social and personal impact on both patients and artists. Art therapy professionals have been accused of not putting enough emphasis on the artistic value and meaning of the artist's works, considering them only from a medical perspective. However, critics of the outsider art movement suggest that crediting an artist's work to an impairment is reductive.[64][65]
