The Art of Art Therapy

What Every Art Therapist Needs to Know

Judith A. Rubin

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2011
• ISBN:
  9781135900564
• Edition: 2
• Topic: Medicine
• Subtopic: Physiotherapy, Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation

The Art of Art Therapy is written primarily to help art therapists define and then refine a way of thinking about their work. This new edition invites the reader to first consider closely the main elements of the discipline embodied in its name: The Art Part and The Therapy Part. The interface helps readers put the two together in an integrated, artistic way, followed by chapters on Applications and Related Service. Included with this edition are downloadable resources containing two hours of chapter-related video content.

Part 1

The Art Part

The visual arts are a rich and complex realm, encompassing history, aesthetics, criticism, and the work of the artist in the studio. While it would be nice to know all aspects in detail, it is not really necessary to be an accomplished historian, aesthetician, or critic. Neither is it essential to be an accomplished worker in all possible art media. Proficiency in any of these can take a lifetime. There are, however, certain kinds of understanding and knowledge that matter more than others for a practicing art therapist. It is these that I emphasize, with the awareness that it is always an asset to know more rather than less about any facet of the visual arts.

There are three chapters in this section, each touching on a different aspect of the art part of art therapy, dealing with the basics: materials, processes, and products. In each chapter, I focus on those elements most critical for the practicing art therapist, although I am aware that I may well have omitted aspects that others would consider essential, like the vast new horizons opened up by the digital age.

In fact, I considered adding a section on the additional options for expression made possible through the use of technology (cf. Malchiodi, 2000). Long ago, I explored the use of film, photography, and stop-motion animation with patients of all ages and am energized by the exciting new options for both art therapists and their clients in the growing varieties of digital media. I am especially hopeful about the potential for computer-based programs to expand the range of artistic expression that is possible for those with serious physical disabilities, as well as for those who might live too far away to enter your studio.

These new developments offer thrilling possibilities and are likely to become more important in art therapy over time as the next generation, who can master and offer them, comes of age. There is an active discussion group on digital art therapy on the Internet, itself a reflection of the rapid growth of these new forms of communication. (http://www.linkedin.com/groups?home=&gid=2172516&trk=anet_ug_hm&goback=%2Eanh_87161_1264520522160_1%2Eanh_2172516).

Perhaps it is a reflection of my age, but I am still convinced that materials that can be touched and shaped by the hands offer a kind of direct sensory experience that is perhaps—even more than before—badly needed by people in this era of virtual reality and technology. For that reason, as well as the fact that most work in art therapy has been with paint, chalk, and clay, the focus of the art part remains traditional art media.

Art is, after all, the core of art therapy. It is my belief that it can and should remain central, no matter how much training or experience you may have had in verbal psychotherapy. Some individual art therapists who have gone on for further study in another mode of treatment have moved more and more into words, with less and less use of art in their work with patients.

I had some concerns when I began studies in psychoanalysis in the 1970s that I, too, might find verbal psychotherapy more attractive. Sitting next to Edith Kramer on a panel in 1979, I was startled when she told me she was sure that I would end up becoming a child analyst rather than an art therapist. I suppose that I might have gone in that direction.

Much to my surprise and delight, however, I discovered that the training in other ways of eliciting and viewing clinical material resulted not only in enhanced expertise, but also in a deeper appreciation of the value of expressive media and of the visual modality in work with other people. Even when the communication is only in words, it is remarkable how often the question, “Is there an image that goes with that thought?” elicits a response that can lead to greater awareness and understanding.

I begin this book with the art part, because that is the element that makes art therapy different from other forms of treatment. It makes art therapy more attractive to some and more unattractive to others. It may enhance a person’s self-esteem or ability for self-expression, but it can also be threatening for many.

Whatever the assets and liabilities of using art in work with people, however, it is the unique and central modality of the art therapist, no matter what the therapist’s level of expertise. The three chapters in this section are not only basic but also interdependent, because there can be no products unless raw materials are transformed via a creative process into art.

References

Malchiodi, C. A. (2000). Art therapy and computer technology. London: Kingsley.

A girl has selected her art materials from a supply table and is taking them to her working space so she can create with them.

A blind boy explores the finger paint medium in all its richness.

Chapter 1

Knowing Materials

Introduction

When you think of making art, you naturally think of using some sort of medium with which to create. It might be a brush with tempera paint, a chunk of water-based clay, or a set of brightly colored markers. Such materials are the core of what we do. To put it simply, without media and tools, there can be no art. While there is indeed such a thing as mental imagery, and people of all ages do think in pictures, for such images to become art they must be concretized in some way.

What Kind of Materials?

In the visual arts, this is done through the use of materials. Art therapists tend to prefer simple media and processes to more complex ones for several reasons. First, the more unstructured the medium, the more an individual will be able to project on it. Since art therapists hope to evoke personally meaningful creations, it makes sense that you would not wish to impose in any way on the client’s natural imagery. So it follows that unstructured art materials like paint, clay, or pastels allow for an infinite range of visual constructions, offering each client the opportunity to find their own style.

Conversely, to paint by numbers or pour clay into molds is not an art activity, although art materials are indeed used. Similarly, making a potholder with cotton loops, a pleasant activity resulting in a useful product, greatly restricts the kind of design that is possible, despite the fact that people are free to choose the colors and how they want to use them within a square metal loom. Such circumscribed tasks require following directions—a laudable capacity, but not one that involves the essence of art therapy, which is helping people to find their own imagery and in so doing to find their authentic selves. While all art materials impose their own intrinsic limits, there is in each the possibility of highly personal work by every individual.

Another reason why art therapists prefer simple media is a practical one. Most art therapy sessions, especially in clinical settings, are limited in time. While it is possible in ongoing art therapy to work on an individual or group project that extends over days, weeks, or even months, there are many contexts in which such work is out of the question—as in a brief assessment or with a group whose membership does not remain consistent, such as open studio groups in hospitals.

There is much to be said for media that permit the creation of satisfying products within the space of an art therapy session. This allows for consideration of the product as well as the process within a single time frame, when the impulses involved in the making are still very much alive. Since we assume that any creation reflects ideas and feelings inside the maker at the time of its creation, being able to reflect on art at the moment it comes into being offers a powerful opportunity for learning about the self.

There is yet another reason why simple, direct media appeal to art therapists, which is the fact that they can be used by individuals of all ages with little or no instruction. As people often tell us, we offer materials that could be “used by a child.” And indeed, beginners of all ages can quickly learn to successfully manipulate chalk, paint, or clay. However, because art therapists are often called upon to give technical help, you also need to know how to use materials effectively and how to convey that knowledge to others. Teaching, a vital component of the work, is done in the service of helping the artists to successfully make their own statements—to say, with pencil or paint or clay, what it is they want to say (cf. Chapter 10, this volume).

In addition to preferring materials that are simple and unstructured, art therapists have sufficient respect for media to use only those that are sturdy and effective. This does not, as some people imagine, mean that you need to offer the most expensive art supplies. Indeed, a reasonably strong grade of white drawing paper (60–80 lb.) is adequate for most media, and the highest quality would be unnecessarily extravagant. Newsprint, on the other hand, while the cheapest, is also the most likely to tear.

Indeed, it is vital to avoid inexpensive materials that lead to frustration. It is better to have boxes with 8 colors of decent-quality markers than to have sets of 16 colors that dry up too rapidly. Sometimes, less-expensive materials are even easier to manipulate than more costly ones, which is true, for example, of different brands of oil-based clay or some colored chalks vs. some pastels. What does matter is that the material be strong enough to withstand the pressures of normal usage, and that it does what it is supposed to do.

Respect for materials is reflected not only in choosing those that are of reasonably good quality and will work predictably, but also in caring for all media and tools with genuine concern. Brushes should therefore be washed right away with soap, paper should be stored neatly, clay and tempera paint should be maintained at a usable consistency, and so on. Not only does such good care extend the value of limited resources, but also it makes a statement to the client about the value of the materials. This is analogous to the even more important message conveyed to the client through your handling and storage of the individual’s art products. Is it possible to be respectful of a person and to be at the same time careless about his creations? I think not.

Knowing Media Well Enough to Help Others

Given these general requirements—for media that are simple, sturdy, and well maintained—what other things should concern an art therapist about materials? First, you should be aware of the unique capabilities of different media, surfaces, and tools in order to be able to offer adaptive solutions to people’s problems in the actualization of their creative intentions. Most central, I believe, is sufficient experience with the use of those offered so that you can assist in technical matters.

For example, if you do not know about the use of armatures to support three-dimensional modeled work, you cannot help someone whose clay figure keeps collapsing with anything but their feelings of frustration. Similarly, if a person wants to build up the texture of acrylic paint, it is important to know not only that it is possible, but also which available materials would work. Or, when someone wants to represent overlapping with transparency, it may be up to you to suggest cellophane or tissue paper as workable ways to concretize such an idea.

The essential types of material are actually few in number, but you need to know each in depth. There are the surfaces on which people may work, which include papers of various weights, colors, and sizes, as well as cardboards of different kinds, canvases, Masonite, wood, and more. You need to be familiar with all of the commonly available kinds of paper, and to know the limitations and capacities of different types, in order to help someone select the most facilitating size and kind of surface for a drawing, painting, or collage. Knowing the range of possible papers and other surfaces helps you to provide the client with appropriate choices, without which there may be considerable unnecessary frustration.

As for drawing materials, you need to be familiar with all kinds of pencils—soft, hard, colored, charcoal, and those designed for normally resistant surfaces, such as transparency pencils or china markers. You also need to know about different kinds of pens—those with a variety of nibs for use with ink, ballpoints, roller ball, felt tipped, and so on. There are many kinds of ink and watercolor markers now available, each with different possibilities, in various sizes and ranges of hues (and even odors). Then there is charcoal, both natural and pressed, and in pencil form.

As for crayons, there is not only the traditional wax variety in a range of sizes and shapes but also others made of solid paint (like oil crayons and PaintStiks) and those more closely related to chalk (like Conté crayons). Finally, there are chalks and pastels, which come in many different shapes and sizes, with varying degrees of softness. What is essential is that you be aware of the many potential drawing tools and of the most appropriate surfaces for each kind and variation.

There is a similar range of possibilities in painting media, with many varieties of each type available. Watercolors come soft in tubes or hard in pans; tempera comes in blocks, liquid, and powder form; and there are other water-based media as well, like gouache and casein.

Finger paint can be created in different textures, using a variety of available bases (such as soap flakes or liquid detergent or the many “cooked” types, for which recipes are available); there is also the commercially prepared variety in moist or powder form. Finally, there are the more costly painting media, such as oils (which now come in a water-soluble form as well) and acrylics, available in tubes or as a liquid.

Manufacturers continue to create new types of paint and new ways of delivering it, like “tempera markers,” liquid tempera paint in plastic bottles that can be squeezed and applied in dots, lines, or masses. As with drawing tools, it is essential to know about the many types of paints available so you can help people find what they need.

Another central creative mode in art therapy is three-dimensional work with modeling materials. Here, you need to know about clay—all kinds—from those that are fired in a kiln, to those that are designed to be baked in a kitchen oven or air-dried. In addition to natural or man-made clay with a water base that hardens, you need to know about oil-based clay, which does not get hard and comes in a variety of colors and degrees of pliability. Then, there are the modeling doughs, some that are commercially prepared, and many that can be created using a variety of available recipes.

Finally, there are commercial modeling preparations in plastic or powder form with a wide range of qualities, such as Sculpey, a polymer clay available in a variety of weights and colors, to be baked and painted, or Model Magic, an exceptionally soft dough that can be baked and kneaded by weak hands, whether young, old, or disabled. You need to be familiar not only with the many types of modeling materials available, but also with...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Contents
• Acknowledgments
• Foreword to the Revised Edition
• Preface
• Introduction
• Part 1: The Art Part
• Part 2: The Therapy Part
• Part 3: The Interface
• Part 4: Applications
• Part 5: Related Service
• Addendum: Knowing What You Don’t Know
• Appendix A: Books in Art Therapy and Related Areas
• Appendix B: Contents of the DVD
• Index