Fundamentals of Art “Art is an escape from what exists. What forces us to make art is the feeling of escaping from what exists . Escapin...
Fundamentals of Art
“Art is an escape from what exists. What forces us to make art is the feeling of escaping from what exists. Escaping from what exists, hating what exists, creates art. Art is what should exist but does not.” Ali Shariati(1)
The American Art Therapy Association defines art therapy as “an integrated mental health and human services specialty that improves the lives of individuals, families, and communities through active art-making, the creative process, applied psychological theory, and a human experience within a therapeutic relationship” (2) .
Although the use of art for treatment can be traced back as far as drawing pictures on cave walls, it is still very new as a profession in the field of mental health (3). It emerged in Europe in the late 1930s and early 1950s during efforts to rehabilitate traumatized armed forces personnel after the Second World War (4). During this period, the aim is for the patient to relax by expressing himself. A space large enough for the patients to work without feeling the attention on them and sufficient space for each patient were allocated, painting materials and a table were placed, and the patient was guided to paint under the silent observation of the therapists, without any intervention (4). Recently, US mental health experts, in order to associate art with therapy, have underlined that ancient people facilitated their way of expressing themselves by drawing symbols on the walls of caves to describe life events such as seasonal changes, war and migration (5).
With the establishment of the British Association of Art Therapists in the period from the early 1960s to the late 1970s, many art therapists supported the anti-psychiatry movement and humanistic therapeutic schools of thought, and art therapy came under the influence of the psychoanalytic approach of Jung, who was also a sculptor and artist. In the period from the 1980s to the present day, studies have become increasingly professional. The problem of how to integrate a therapeutic approach with the general treatment philosophy has begun to preoccupy art therapists (4).
American Art Therapy Association (AATA) was founded in 1969, with a volunteer group that has been participating in "Art Psychotherapy Training and Workshops" at Istanbul University, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry since 2004, and who want to improve studies in this field, and Art Psychotherapies Association Turkey. was established in 2012 (6).
Art, defined by Altınölçek (7) as a channel for people to mutually share their feelings, thoughts and aspirations with each other, as well as revealing the creativity of the individual; In particular, music has been a method of healing in our culture for 6000 years; Poetry, folk songs and songs mediated social healing and reducing the burden of traumatic experiences (8). Turkish-Islamic scholars and physicians such as Zekeriya Er-Razi, Farabi and Ibn Sina laid the foundations of the use of music in the treatment of mental disorders with their scientific studies (5).
Art functions like a psychotherapy method by satisfying unfulfilled needs through symbolic means and helping to maintain mental health and serenity (5). Clients have the opportunity to improve their self-perception during the artistic process (9). Even producing a work within an artistic framework and sharing about it is considered therapeutic (Sarandöl, Akkaya, Eracar & Kırlı, 2013, act. 10). The concreteness of work in the art environment adds a dimension to art therapy that is not available in other therapy models. In art therapy, there is the opportunity to observe, dialogue with, see and compare with a second look the products that are given to the client or the products that are stored, exhibited or disintegrated according to their needs during the process (11).
Art therapy encourages self-expression by encouraging the client to physically use colors and symbols and then put this experience into words (12). The ultimate goal of many therapy approaches is to express the unconscious (5). The true importance of art therapy sessions goes beyond the capacity of spoken words. This is an honoring of action and image rather than a devaluation of words (16). It appeals to the healthy and creative side of the client by providing an authentic, non-worrying expression and openness to new possibilities for change and development (11).
The diversity of art materials and clients' choices allows the expression of memories associated with emotions such as depression, anger, confusion, grief, and deprivation (11). In this context, the obligation of art therapy is to open space for individuals to express their situations and themselves through artistic activity. When this is achieved, art therapy is a method that increases the inner strength of the individual through active expression, enabling them to look at life from different perspectives and change by positively affecting their mood (13).
One of the basic principles of art therapy is that the person makes the interpretation about himself (14). “What would the thing you painted say if it were spoken to?” question is a tool that changes the client's perspective. After this perspective change, the client returns to the chair and the process of thinking about what the clients experienced in that session and what discovery they will bring to their lives from these experiences begins (17). Role reversal is important for empathic symbolization (18). Evaluating other products on the same theme in art therapy group studies also strengthens the person's insight (14).
It is not a requirement for clients to have art education. Since what is expected is not to produce a work that can be described as beautiful within artistic aesthetics, it is deemed sufficient to convey emotions through artistic materials (4). Life itself is the process of shaping, taking action, and therefore creating the vision of an uncertain future. If creative style life is lost, the individual's sense that life is real or meaningful disappears (Winnicot, 1971 cited 14).
Art therapy can be used with individuals of all ages and is an effective method, especially for individuals who have difficulty expressing themselves verbally (10). In the words of Mevlana, "Whatever is in the jug will leak out." Observing leaks, in a way, creates a way to understand the human soul and inner world through artistic expression (13). Imagination has an important place in the therapeutic relationship (4). Chaotic and overwhelming memories find a concrete expression in the artistic product by creating a safe space within clear boundaries that enable restructuring and processing the traumatic experience (11). While art therapy can repair damage to self-worth, an increase in the individual's insight, awareness and communication skills can be achieved with appropriate feedback from the therapist. It would not be right to perceive art activities as entertainment or a hobby tool; Art therapy serves a therapeutic function (4).
Art therapy is considered a form of complementary and integrative medicine (Malchiodi CA, 2003 cited 14). Art therapists often define their practices as holistic and eclectic approach-oriented, but also as psychodynamic, humanistic (gestalt, human-centered, phenomenological), psychoeducational (behavioral, cognitive-behavioral, developmental), systemic (family and group therapy-oriented) (15). Psychotherapeutic orientation is related to art . It determines the framework of the therapy process and the road map in which approach the reflections on the products will be interpreted (5).
In practice, the field of application of art therapy is not limited to specific disorders. It also has an important place in inpatient psychiatric routine and psychosomatic clinics (5). Avrahami stated that art therapy plays a unique role in working with clients suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder by providing a specific treatment for dissociated memories and allowing clients to experience a unique integrative process. It is used successfully in the therapy of personality disorders that create intense transference and countertransference during the therapy process , in clients who cannot express themselves verbally, in children with autism , mental retardation or behavioral disorders, in clients with post- traumatic stress disorder, in patients diagnosed with chronic pain, some chronic neurological disorders ( 5).
Edith Kramer defined the art therapist as a specialist who combines the qualifications of being a competent artist with special skills in the field of psychotherapy and education. Judith A. Rubin considers it necessary to be trained as a clinician to propose art as a therapy, and to synthesize art and therapy, a two-year associate's degree study that includes not only coursework but also intensive clinical training obtained through hours of counseling clients (Rubin 2010, cited in 3).
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