Some people have come to question the use of the term “art therapy” on this site. While there is nothing wrong with this, I feel that this is a topic worth addressing as there may be other readers who feel the same way.
One visitor to the site, Fiona, made the following comment on the benefits page that I’d like to address:
“I can’t help but question the suggestion that art therapy can be learnt and done at home on your own minus the therapist. I believe a significant portion of the therapy in art therapy is the supportive, witnessing and therapeutic safety net that the presence of a qualified art therapist provides. I agree that art work created away from the art therapy environment can be a stress reliever but argue it’s not therapy; just art.”
I am not saying that anyone can learn “art therapy.” Fiona’s interpretation of art therapy may differ from mine. The intrinsic value of therapy is going to be different for everyone and subject to the individual’s needs. Some people may need or want an art therapist…and there is nothing wrong with that. In fact, I’d encourage it if that’s what the individual wants or needs. However, I don’t believe everyone always needs an art therapist present to achieve therapeutic results.
I very much disagree with Fiona’s last statement about art work created away from an art therapy environment not being therapy, just art. I feel like that really undermines what art therapy is about. I know this is a rather cliché approach, but I’m going to pull the dictionary out for the sake of meaning.
The definition of therapy according to dictionary.com:
- the treatment of disease or disorders, as by some remedial, rehabilitating, or curative process: speech therapy.
- a curative power or quality.
- psychotherapy.
- any act, hobby, task, program, etc., that relieves tension.
These definitions lend themselves to exactly what this site is about. From my perspective, therapy is better defined by the individual. If walking around a park helps you relieve tension, that’s therapy. If painting is a remedial or rehabilitative process for you, it’s therapy…more specifically, it’s art therapy. Any act or hobby that is curative or healing in some way would be considered therapy. If that act or hobby is art, then that is art therapy.
You absolutely do not need an art therapist present to benefit from art therapy. However, the benefits will most likely be greater with an art therapist present…I have always said that and will be the first to admit it. But some people may not want to seek “professional” help right away, and in fact, they may want to do some exploration on their own, in private.
Art is a form of communication, just like talking, writing, or any of the various forms of non-verbal communication we use daily. Whether we all would like to admit it or not, talking to a friend in a time of need can be therapeutic. Writing in your journal can be therapeutic. Creating a piece of art can be therapeutic. In a lot of instances (not all), it’s the act of communicating that is, in and of itself, therapeutic.
So, where does art end and therapy begin? There is no easy answer to that…but I think it depends on the person. Simply put, if creating art is therapeutic, that’s art therapy. If there is more “therapy” that happens after the art…well, that’s just good ‘ol therapy.
Thanks for your response to my comment. I agree that undeniably art has always throughout history had a therapeutic benefit: Van Gogh and millions of other artists (famous or those working anon at their kitchen table) are a testament to it. This very attribute is what makes art therapy such a powerful medium. Perhaps the differing of titles such as art therapist and art psychotherapist don’t help in the ambigutiy as to where the therapy begins and ends. As a trained and registered art therapist I am bound by a code of Ehics that ensures that I am Supervised, Insured, updating my training, and that I ‘do not harm’ by being aware of the psychdynamics of a therapeutic relationship.I have encountered many artists who work as artists within health care fields and it is an enormously beneficial medium however art therapy as a profession must always keep the client safe: I believe it is vitally important to ensure that a client is aware that they should and need to clarify with a potential therapist what their qualifications, philosophy, ethical boundaries etc are before embarking on a therapeutic journey at a vulnerable time of their lives. If this transpenancy is present and the client is aware that they are distinct differences between working with an art therapist and creating art alone then ‘no harm’ is a more likely outcome. As an artist myself I live a distinct difference between creating art and art therapy. I use my journal for dream work etc but for me the depths are only safely plumbed with the presence of the objective, safe guarded presence of an art therapist. The art(psyho)therapy is within the therapeutic alliance of client, art work and art therapist.
Fiona, thanks for the insightful comments. I definitely agree that a registered therapist of any discipline, art or otherwise, should be bound by a code of ethics, be insured, etc. I certainly understand the challenge and responsibility you must adhere to as a professional art therapist.
You also bring up an excellent point that anyone seeking professional help should inquire about…clarifying with a potential therapist their qualifications, philosophy/style, and ethics. I’m sure there are instances where a “poor” professional therapy experience could have been avoided if this advice was taken.
Additionally, I think one thing we haven’t really mentioned is expectations. I think an important distinction to make is the difference between professional therapy and, for lack of a better word, “everyday” therapy. It’s likely that a person looking to perform or enhance their “everyday” art therapy might not have the same expectations as someone utilizing professional art therapy.
With regards to this site, obviously we use the term “therapy” more broadly, referring to more than just professional therapy.
Thanks again Fiona, your comments are always appreciated!
I know I’m late to the party on this post, but I wanted to offer that the distinction being made here is, I think, best described as the difference between art as healing and art therapy. Art as healing is a belief held by art therapists, that the act of creating art itself is healing and therapeutic. However, art therapy is a theory of practice to USE art to deal with or identify problems or inconsistencies in a client’s life. Additionally, I think effective therapy brings out growing pains and no person can ever be as effective as a therapist because we instinctively don’t want to put ourselves through pain, which may be necessary for growth.
thanks for knowledge but ? am not native so it s hard to understand ur comment for me please be clearer for those.. thx also ? agree with all of u
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Even as this is an old post I came across through google, I still feel an urge to comment. Definitions have changed since the original post was made. Art one makes themselves for purpose of healing without a therapist present is called therapeutic art. Art therapy is a name claimed by the profession of art therapists, which implies that a trained art therapist is present. Art therapists have masters degrees in art therapy and are required to have an additional 1,000 hours of supervised direct client work and continued education in mental health throughout their careers. Admittedly the terms become confusing and art therapists have become defensive of the term art therapy as it is also the term used in their professional identity. The dictionary.com definition of therapy is indeed very open. as is the
Neither helping this repost.
Cambridge dictionary
Meaning of therapy in English
therapy
noun [ C or U ]
US /??er.?.pi/ UK /??er.?.pi/
B2
a treatment that helps someone feel better, grow stronger, etc., especially after an illness:
occupational therapy
speech therapy
group therapy
Joining a club can be a therapy for loneliness.
More examples
Have you had any therapy for your depression?
The center has developed a form of therapy for autistic children.
You could have some therapy to improve mobility in that leg.
So I can hardly fault the blog author or others who would agree with her, but as an art therapist I would like to have a clear definition of our work, which is called art therapy and requires that a trained professional art therapist be present in accordance with ethical guidelines of the American Art Therapy Association. I practiced art myself for 30 years before becoming an art therapist so I agree very much with the idea that art making can be therapy. Thats why I became an art therapist. While becoming an art therapist I learned how much more psychology training is involved and that the process of art therapy with an art therapist present is quite different than making art for therapeutic benefits by oneself. Both are great things to do. I hope that we can in time be clearer about the meaning of the words we use. Sometime I wish that we had a different name for our profession. It seems we are constantly having to explain ourselves. We have taken over the term art therapy and want the rest of the world to use the term therapeutic art to describe the benefits explained in this blog post. So there it is, a small dilemma of word choice. So be it written in 2020.