Adults and children may find it difficult to talk about how they feel or know how to express the feelings that are causing anguish. They may find it easier to use a nonverbal method of communication such as the use of art materials this may allow a connection between the client, the art object, and the therapist and whilst reflecting on the image and dialogue with the therapist, the client may discover and make sense of an experience that has previously been causing them sorrow.
Art materials and the process of making art is a tactile, sensory way of helping someone to communicate difficult thoughts and feelings into becoming a tangible object that may then be reflected upon by art maker and therapist. Art made by the client is not judged on aesthetic capability but encouragement by the therapist to build confidence to make a mark and what the process of making art has discovered in the clients subconscious which is then visualised.
There is a complex but innate relationship between art materials, the process of making art and the inherent healing properties that are central to art therapy practice. As a Master of Arts with a degree in Art Psychotherapy, I am a member of the Health Care Professions Council (HCPC) and the British Association of Art Therapists (BAAT) . Each of these organisations have a code of ethics of professional practice which each art therapist adheres too.
At the University of Derby, the undirected psychodynamic approach to art therapy is taught, thereby allowing an open, unbiased approach to art making conversation and cognition. This includes all the theories in psychology that see human functioning based upon the interaction of drives and forces within the person, particularly the unconscious and between the different structures of the personality. Sigmund Freud's psychoanalysis was the original psychodynamic theory, but the psychodynamic approach encompasses all theories that were based on his ideas. e.g. Carl Jung (1912), Melenie Klein (1921), Alfred Adler (1927), Anna Freud (1936) and Erik Erikson ( 1950).
My previous experience is collaborating with clients who have psychological disorders, acute psychiatric conditions, and physical complexities. Adults diagnosed with learning difficulties and or autism.
I am currently working as a freelance psychodynamic art psychotherapist for the Artstherapies UK,org,uk. People can self refer to this charity or can be referred by their families, social workers, and social prescribers. It has become a nation wide service offering one to one therapies with five modalities of therapy.
Psychological area's covered are emotional difficulties, mental health conditions, domestic violence and rape victims and people who have suffered trauma or complex trauma