Another oldie! It’s interesting learning about the attitudes people have towards art therapy. Some people believe art therapy consists of a practitioner analysing your work, and telling a client something about themselves that perhaps they didn’t know. What I’ve learned about AT is quite the opposite. The practitioner is never able to tell the client what is going on inside. Instead, art acts as a gateway that is used to encourage the client to reveal things about themselves to the professional. A therapist may observe you, ask questions and take an active role in your process, but ultimately it’s the clients journey- and the therapist needs to take a back seat most of the time. The therapist will ask questions about how the artistic process makes the client feel, but must refrain from coercing the client into admitting feelings that may not be authentically from their heart. Genuineness is fundamental. The art therapy process is possible to do on your own. I’ve done it for myself. An art therapist is there to guide those who may need a companion, or safe space to conduct this process.
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