Art Therapy: A General Overview

"Einstein's Faithful Servant" a painting by Leah Guzman 2016. Image taken from the American Art Therapy Association website.

A new therapy style was begun by an English artist named Adrian Hill in the 1940’s. This style was an early form of what we know today as art therapy. Patients would create art for self-expression, to have a sort of physical manifestation of their feelings. As the years progressed and interest in art therapy began to grow, the original principles of art therapy began to morph. Research by U.S. psychologist Margaret Naumberg in the late forties indicated that artwork created by patients was a form of symbolic speech and could be analyzed and interpreted. Today most art therapy programs use creative techniques to let a patient freely express themselves, and then decode the messages within the artwork to help the patient have an improved understanding of what they are feeling. This draws on ideas from the art movement of Symbolism, that the art contains the essence of the artist. One of the really big points to understand about art therapy is that no artistic aptitude is necessary. This is because the most important part of the process is the creation of something, not the final artistic product.

According to the Art Therapy Association “Art Therapy is used to improve cognitive and sensory-motor functions, foster self-esteem and self-awareness, cultivate emotional resilience, promote insight, enhance social skills, reduce and resolve conflicts and distress, and advance societal and ecological change”. On a physiological level, the practice of creative expression reduces blood pressure and releases chemicals that increase mood and lower the chance of depression. The cool thing about this is that the immediate physical benefits of art therapy can be achieved in the comfort of your own home. A licensed professional is unnecessary unless you are looking for long term growth or healing.

Okay so now that we’ve covered a little bit on what art therapy is I want to go over the psychological effects of a natural disaster like Hurricane Katrina.

One of the most common mental health epidemics after a natural disaster is post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). It’s an anxiety disorder that develops when a person experiences or is exposed to a situation that involves severe physical harm. This disorder can make a person uneasy in situations that present no danger. People with PTSD also often re-experience trauma associated with an event through a flashback. Following Hurricane Katrina, the University of Michigan did a study for the ‘Archives of General Psychiatry’ that showed at least 30% of New Orleans showed symptoms of PTSD. Another common disorder often associated with natural disasters is serious emotional disturbance (SED). This disorder is mainly prevalent in children and symptoms include serious anxiety, moods swings, and distorted thinking abilities. The University of Michigan did not analyze the prevalence of this mental disorder but it undoubtedly had a strong presence.

The ‘healing process’ after a natural disaster is often referring to the rebuilding of houses and infrastructure. However mental healing of the community is just as important. In the next blog we will look at how people impacted by Hurricane Katrina used art to help their communities mentally and emotionally.

Ninth ward residents pray against the newly rebuilt levee wall. Image taken from Scientific American Article found here https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/hurricane-katrina-s-psychological-scars-revealed/

Works Cited:

AATA Editors. “About Art Therapy.” American Art Therapy Association, American Art Therapy Association, 2016, arttherapy.org/about-art-therapy/.

Psychology Today Editors. “Art Therapy.” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers, 2018, www.psychologytoday.com/us/therapy-types/art-therapy.

Bankhead, Charles. “Psychological Effects of Hurricane Katrina Persist.” Medpage Today, MedpageToday, 3 Dec. 2007, www.medpagetoday.com/psychiatry/anxietystress/7563.

Journal Editors. “The History of Art Therapy.” ArtTherapyJournal.org, ArtTherapyJournal.org, 2018, www.arttherapyjournal.org/art-therapy-history.html.

Seawel, J.T. “Psychological Effects of Katrina.” Hurricane Katrina, UNC Office of Arts and Sciences Information Services, 2 Dec. 2010, hurricanekatrina.web.unc.edu/psychological-effects-of-katrina/.