What is Art Therapy?
Art Therapy is an expressive, trauma-informed therapy that weaves dynamic creative processes with best-practice counselling & psychotherapy. It draws on various art forms, such as visual arts, poetry, music, dance and drama, to facilitate insights and healing in ways that traditional talk therapies may not always be able to. The act of creating is inherently empowering; it offers us an infinite language of form, colour, texture, movement, metaphors and images with which to understand and connect with what hurts, and equally with what heals.
Our field of practice does not focus exclusively on alleviating symptoms of pain and distress. Art Therapy works with the whole person as situated in their unique context and culture of lived experience. By supporting clients to navigate discomfort alongside expanding capacities for curiosity, confidence, compassion, resilience and flow, we can move from stuck to unstuck, find our spark, and discover what truly matters.
Neurobiology, cognitive neuroscience, psychology and other science disciplines have established a strong, solid and rigorous evidence base for the creative arts therapies, as documented and recognised by the World Health Organisation. While we could dive into the research and literature here, we make a conscious choice not to overwhelm with large quantities of text and top-down theories – for this is not the experience that the arts offers. We can cross that bridge at a later time, but for now, we we will say that the best way to know art therapy is to experience it.
Explore our services and what the arts can offer:
More Art Therapy FAQs
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No, Art Therapy is not an art class.
Art Therapy focuses on the process of creating, whereas art classes tend to focus on developing art skills, producing specific artworks and achieving particular outcomes from the creative process.
Art Therapy is delivered by a trained, masters-level practitioner who uses creative methods to support clients in moving towards their therapy goals. Our Creative Arts Therapist is a qualified, professional member of ANZACATA, the peak professional body of creative arts therapies in Australia, New Zealand and the Asia/Pacific region. Read our story here.
Another distinguishing feature is that art classes may involve relationships with the art facilitator, but this does not imply the presence of a trusted, therapeutic alliance. Therapeutic alliance is key to the effectiveness of art therapy in supporting clients to process personal experiences in safe and appropriate ways. While art making can feel therapeutic on its own, Art Therapy is a recognised allied health profession that intersects art, health and science to facilitate emotional change and lasting wellbeing.
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Art Therapy is not a new movement or field.
Although formally recognised as a therapeutic discipline in the early 20th century, the intersections of art, creativity and health have roots tracing back to prehistoric times, when some of the earliest forms of human expression were discovered and documented. Our field of practice does not claim ownership of the arts, but recognises its deep history and the act of creating as an essential and innate human need.
Our understanding also respects and aligns with principles that Indigenous and First Nations cultures have known for thousands of years, which acknowledges our inherent interconnectedness with the world and the role of creative expression in gathering knowledge directly experienced from our relationships with materials, each other, and the living land.