Art Therapy
Welcome to art therapy. This page represents a collection of all the art therapy projects I have come across. Some are from my therapist, (shared with permission) some from books and the internet, and some are my own ideas. Please feel free to use these as your own and share them with others!
If you have any ideas or projects that you would like to share, please contact me.
Some people do not know what art therapy is. Instead of explaining it myself, here are some other people’s explanations:
- About art therapy from American Art Therapy Association
- Art therapy from WikiPedia
- What is art therapy? by Art Therapy
- What is art therapy? from Elizabeth Beck
Art Therapy Project Ideas
General Projects:
- Collages– collages are always an easy and fun place to start!
- Doll Making as a Spiritual Journey by Kay Marie Porterfield.
- Make something, anything, without direction or the end result in mind.
- Positive Pockets – create a personal box of inspirational statements from Creative Therapy Sessions.
- Photography as a Healing Practice – try using your camera to heal.
- Sew dolls and pillows – from Elizabeth Beck.
Projects for Solving Problems & Reaching Goals:
- Knit for anxiety – from Elizabeth Beck.
- Panic Book – create small pictures or cards of things, places and people that help you to be calm, or that bring your mind into them and away from panic and anxious thoughts. Document your favorite things so that you can look at the images in times of stress to help bring you into the ‘now’. See my Panic Book.
- The Problem – draw a picture that represents any current problem that you are having. Try to do this without thinking about it to much, just letting the process take over. Once done look at the drawing to see if it reveals anything new about the issue. It might help to set it aside and look at it the next day.
- Project Positivity – write out or create an artwork that incorporates 10 things that you like about yourself. Idea from Deviant Art.
- ‘Tarot’ Personality Cards – create visual representations of the ‘voices in your head,’ otherwise known as alters and/or personality fragments. Create one representation on each card. I would suggest using collage art because it is easy to cut out symbols and pictures that remind you of each alter, and put them together.
- Vision Board – this is helpful in making goals visually tangible. Create an artwork, or series of art pieces, that represent your goal or desired end result. Here is one of mine (Picture 1), which illustrates my ideal life, with each circle representing a different area.
Activity Lists:
- Art therapy activities and ideas from Art Therapy
Art Therapy Blogs:
- Arts and Healing Podcast – interviews with art therapist types
- Art Therapy – exploring expressive arts as a catalyst for healing and therapy (artwork page)
- Crackers & Juiceboxes Artwork
- Elizabeth Beck – art therapy site from an art therapist
- Grace’s Art Journey
- Secret Shadows has a full art therapy category
- Sundrip Journals Art Therapy
Art Therapy Websites:
- American Art Therapy Association
- American Dance Therapy Association
- American Music Therapy Association
- Arts and Healing Network – online resource for those interested in the healing potential of art
- Arts as a Force of Healing – offers links to countless sites related to art and healing
- Awakenings Project – mission is to assist artists with psychiatric illnesses in developing their craft
- Live Your Creative Vision – creative growth and healing
- Meet an art therapist – interview with Megan Robb
Cool Art Therapy Products:
Now, I am not a representative for any of these companies or trying to get you to buy anything. These are just cool products that I have come across that relate to art therapy:
- Buddha Board – writes temporarily with water
- Urban Art Therapy – Graffiti Research Lab outfits graffiti artists with open source technologies