Art Therapy Essay

I. Introduction, History, and Problem â€Å"Art speaks of originality, individuality, a creative process, graphic materials, colors, textures, spontaneity, risk, alternatives, and imagination†¦ Therapy implies taking care of, waiting, listening, healing, moving towards wholeness, growth provoking medicine, human exchange, sympathetic understanding† (Fleshman and Fryrear, 1981, p.75), quoting from a research paper of Dr. Carol Lark of The Art Center in Missouri. So what then truly is Art Therapy? Art therapy is a form of psychological therapy that employs artistic media, not verbal communication, as its principal means of communication to help and cure patients, who are suffering from traumatic experiences, mental or physical problems, and behavioral imbalance. Art media includes painting or drawing, photo image, sculpture, clay art, color art and other forms that showcase their feelings, moods, and maybe even show hidden talents or abilities that they are not aware of. But clients who are in need of this therapy do not have to be skilled in the arts, for the main concern is not the aesthetics of the creation but to cause change and growth in the life of the client. Art therapy is a procedure administered by an art therapist in a designated art therapy room to bring about a successful result of the practice. The art therapist is a highly-trained and experienced professional whose skills are tested by a patient in a complex and difficult task to improve his/her well-being. They are well educated about human nature and development, psychological theories, clinical practice, spiritual, multicultural and artistic language and traditions, and the healing probabilities of art. Art therapist convenes with people of all ages and social standing either in individual or group settings. The art therapy room or â€Å"creative arena† (Case, 1992, p.19) is the place where a â€Å"triangular relationship† (Case, 1992, p.19) is formed by the art work created, the patient or client, and the therapist. This kind of relationship is what makes art therapy different form other clinical practices of therapy. This arena is expected to be a place of security and of peace so that the right therapeutic process is administered thoroughly and far better results are achieved. Art therapy was first coined by an artist named Adrian Hill who was practicing it with his tuberculosis patients at the King Edward VII Sanatorium in Sussex to recover from their illness. In its formative years in the United States, from the early 1930s through the middle 1950s, art therapy was practiced by fine artists and art educators in medical, psychiatric and educational centers and facilities. Although the first post was established in 1946, early stages of the profession of art therapy were seen in the 1950s. There were debates and discussions whether it is to be considered a profession or an acceptable mode of therapy in psychology. Through the other disciplines, these are psychology, sociology, anthropology, physiology, aesthetics, and education, it later became known as a profession and was officially recognized in the health service in 1981. It became extensively distinguished from then on and is continuously expanding. Since art therapy is practiced by different therapists, it is rather a diverse career or clinical practice. However, despite the diversity of work, I believe that art therapy improves/changes attitude of people who have psychological problems. II. Function/Significance of Research This research is designed to further address the argument within this kind of profession: whether it is the art creation itself that serves as a healing mediator, whether it is the existence of the therapist that uplifts the distraught, whether it is the art therapy place that serves as a temporary haven, or is it the overall components of art therapy-the art, the therapist, and the therapy room- working together as a team to improve the condition of the patient. It aims to present an understanding of art therapy as an effective psychotherapeutic approach to patients and give them an idea of the progress of this clinical practice. The discussion in the rationale page is an extensive talk about the real claims of art therapy as a healing process to psychologically-impaired individuals. It talks about the factors that comprise a sound art therapy session and the affirmation seen by therapists on their clients after the artistic experience is explored. This paper intends to introduce to the readers both the theory, applications, and practices of art therapy and gives them the imagination to discover the value of it through different work settings. There is also the attempt to summarize the most important points and features of this kind of practice for understanding of new readers to this field. Although, the foremost objective of this paper is to make people believe what they think is unbelievable in the arts and its purpose. To let them realize that healing is not just a personal struggle if you let other people come into your life and show you the way to personal redemption. III. Rationale (explore the hypothesis) When Hill started to practice art therapy, he discovered that painting has two purposes for the patient: it became a way to kill the time and it also provided them a medium to release anxiety and trauma. Even in the most serious or aggravating situations in our lives, through artistic expressions we experience a sense of power and liberation; our dignity and self-respect are stimulated by this creative activity as opposed to those who say that creative expression is a shallow approach to good health and well-being. History shows that self-repair and total transformation is achieved through the dominant force of art expression. Victims of disaster, tragedy, despair, or the daily dangers of life respond to these kinds of cases with affirmations of care and love for each other due to the healing process of art therapy conducted in peaceful and safe places of free expression. Take for example the case of 9/11 terrorist attacks. During their time of grief, people gathered together to release the negative emotions and commemorate the loss of their loved ones. Despite the hatred and anger, compassion among them superseded everything. Within the area of attacks, people offered flowers, prayers, songs, and presented memorabilia such as drawings, sketches, photo images of the victims. These are true examples of artistic expression, both the verbal and nonverbal medium that help the families and friends of the victims overcome the pain and trauma of losing a loved one. â€Å"Psychological safety is a primary element of the healing environment† (Kalmanowitz, 2005, p.xiv) because they are afraid to reveal themselves in places where they believe their artworks and actions will be misunderstood and shamed. In this tragedy, even though the towers were the targets of attacks, these people felt secure expressing their grief because mainly of the overflow of emotions encompassing the area. They felt that it was okay to pour out their pain, and they were not alone. Volunteer groups, either professional or non-professional clinicians, stood by them and comforted the down-trodden. But the process did not end there because survivors were involved in support group therapy that uses art as the basis of healing. Any creation or image presented by the client signifies an emotion or thought, even the past, present, or future phases of his/her life. Inner experience and feelings surface through the art process in a chaotic raw form. These art materials provide a concrete way through which the conscious and unconscious aspects of a person can be revealed. Art or expressive therapy grants an opportunity for the individual to discern the bad habits that generate conflicts within himself and conflicts with other people. â€Å"Making the invisible visible is a major function of the art in art therapy† (Lark, 2001, p.1). The object appears to the therapist as an extension of the client’s self with a symbolic meaning yet to be understood by both of them. The object or image is telling us a story. It opens opportunities to enter and read the human psyche. The making of an artwork encourages discipline and self-esteem, and requires socialization within the confinements of the therapeutic sessions. The judgment and comprehension of the therapist is based on how the object is made and what art materials are used to complete the image. Therapists are expected to learn the underlying meanings of it since this was part of their education and practice. Therapists are expected to be sensitive people on matters of sensitivity of the client’s mind and soul. Let’s take another example designed by art therapy practitioners. The â€Å"House-Tree-Person technique† (Hammer, 1964, p.9) is one of the popular and widely-used psychoanalytic tasks used as an approach in art therapy. The House-Tree-Person technique requires the client to draw a house, a tree and a person on a white paper. This drawing or image evaluates how the client sees himself or herself in the world through the comprehension of the therapist. The branches of the Tree overextended upward or outward are interpreted by the therapist as the subject’s over striving for success. Windows situated against the wall of the House, so the side of the House also serves as one side of the windows, represent feelings of lack of self-confidence. If in profile view, only one part of the person-for example, head or body- is shown, an elusive attitude in social affairs is projected. For deeply depressed patients, lack of complete details and use of very faint lines are a combination found in their works. A feeling of isolation, exposure, and helplessness in the face of environmental pressures is, on the other hand, seen in a line sloping downwards and away from the drawn whole. Meanwhile, art therapy with individual clients and groups should also be considered as to the client’s presentation of his art. Individual client setting is requested when he/she feels more comfortable in creative expression if it is a direct one on one approach. Group therapy setting is rather joined by an individual if she feels profited by another person’s warmth and physical closeness, which is based on the philosophy that man is a social being. However, group clients still break away from each other at some points and that has to be understood and patiently addressed by the therapist. IV. Methodology of Research The methodology of research I used is mainly through the inductive technique or the collection of data and evaluation of results. Definition, background, historical context and other useful data were collated from resource books on art therapy and from the suppositions of clinical practitioners of art therapy. Data collected were also taken from some research and background academic papers of art therapy professionals. The case sample on the 9/11 attacks were based on newspaper and television accounts, audio-visual and printed memories and notes of the tragedy by journalists. The concrete sample of House-Tree-Person technique was taken from an author’s description. Most research details were gathered from the books and resource papers of authors Lark, Case, Kalmanowitz, and Hammer, carefully examined and understood. Although interviews were not taken, personal notes of motivation and daily observation on people around were also bases on this research. Motivational quotations were also extracted from the resources to define the drama of the whole healing process. V. Conclusion of Research Art therapy can be used with children, adolescents and adults in a wide variety of settings and applications. As an integrative therapy, it offers a necessary option for clients who may need an experiential, less verbally-driven approach. People in all walks of life turn to creative expressions, some may not even be aware that they are already exposed to this activity, because of the lack of knowledge and help from professionals. There are national organizations in and outside America looking after the improvement or development of standards and training in art therapies. One is seen in private offices or corporations, outpatient clinics and hospitals, community and rehabilitation centers, prisons, and schools or universities. They work with individual or group to paint, draw, or do other artwork and derive the importance of imagery used in their creations. These professionals and organizations work hand in hand with each other to bring about a better quality of service in art therapy for their craft and for the benefit of their clients. It has to be realized by the people around psychologically-problematic cases that healing does not only come from the successful art therapy sessions, but their support also contributes to the whole process that they want to achieve for themselves or for other people. Lest they forget that some of the causes of their depression, stress, trauma, and tensions come from their family and society. The successful interpretation of the art object by the therapist, the willingness of the client to open up to the therapist and to other people as well, the comfortable and secure setting of the therapy room, and the artwork itself be it aesthetically balanced or not, all of these components of art therapy are relevant to the client’s well being. The absence of one component means the incomplete and ineffective process of art therapy. Kalmanowitz (2005) also believed that â€Å"the healing qualities of art relate to the total spectrum of the soul’s experience and that art therapy’s relevance is dependent upon its willingness to meet new challenges and go to places where troubles in the human condition exist† (p.xii). Friedrich Nietzsche also once said that unless we deal with our pain, we are truly lost. So much has been said to validate the real nature of art therapy in personal and communal perspectives then and now. But one thing is for sure, art therapy and its relations with other disciplines will continue to develop in the future. Art therapy really changes/improves the attitude of people with psychological problems. We just have to look within ourselves and we might find the urge to help them; we have to look again within ourselves and we might find ourselves needing the therapy for our own conscious and unconscious demons tearing us apart. In these difficult times, we are everyday faced with disconcerting situations where we are left in the middle of the struggle and we do not know how to fight back. These kinds of situations when treated with neglect, thrown away in the air as if it is nothing, are the ones that are dangerous to the human psyche. Do you want to see yourself dancing in the streets naked? Can you see one of your family members killing herself or himself? Would you like to see a world of deranged men acting as beasts? That is why God created us in his own image and likeness, for us to realize that we are made human beings to love and be loved just like he did. References Case, C. and Tessa Dalley. (1992). The Handbook of Art Therapy. New York: Tavistock/Routledge. Fleshman, B. and Jerry L. Fryrear. (1981). The Arts in Therapy. Chicago: Nelson-Hall. Hammer, E. (1964). The House-Tree-Person (H-T-P) Clinical Research Manual. New York: Western Psychological Services. Hill, A. (1941). Art versus Illness. London: George Allen & Unwin. Kalmanowitz, D. and Bobby Lloyd. (2005). Art Therapy and Political Violence: With Art, Without Illusion. London: Bruner-Routledge. Killick, K. and Joy Schaverien. (1997). Art, Psychotherapy and Psychosis. London: Routledge. Lark, C. (2001). Art Therapy Overview: An Informal Background Paper. Retrieved from http://www.art-therapy.com/ArtTherapyOverview.htm. Waller, D. (1993). Group Interactive Art Therapy: Its Use in Training and Treatment. London: Routledge