Brush strokes, chased steps and arpeggios… Today, we can discover ourselves or heal from certain ailments thanks to art therapy. Immersion in these workshops where primary colors and melodies have genius.Self-discovery through art is a cutting-edge “Arts as Medicine” that offers a structured studio art experience in creative issue solving by shifting away from an excessive emphasis on verbal expression to symbolic and non-verbal expression.
ART-THERAPY: THE ART OF RECOVERING YOUR SMILE
Is it true that music supposedly relaxes morals? Music or any other type of art can be used in art therapy as a way to communicate or to start a discussion about a piece that has been created. a conduit of sorts connecting the patient and the art therapist. Drawing, painting, dancing, but also mime, sculpting, or music, can aid in self-discovery, self-expression, and confidence building. like the American painter Jackson Pollock, for whom creating art was a means to vent his anger and anxieties. Or Frida Kahlo, who began painting while confined to bed following a bus accident that left her body broken.
Among the different forms of psychotherapy, there is one that is on the rise: art therapy. Its base: creation. More specifically, the sensory and cognitive faculties mobilized during the creative process. A mechanism that engages the whole person, which facilitates letting go, the manifestation of psychic dynamics, and which can thus be used for therapeutic purposes.
For all ages
Art therapy is for everyone. At the hospital, in a retirement home or during consultations in a practice, it adapts to the patient, his age and the context. By relying on his life strengths, and not on his flaws, art therapy allows him to develop a feeling of security, autonomy, and promotes the restoration of self-esteem. An effective means for the management of stress, anxieties, addiction, post-traumatic symptoms… or quite simply for the purpose of personal development (temporary difficulty, relationship problems, etc.).
Create and feel
Dance, painting, colouring, sculpture or even singing, the art chosen and the artistic production do not matter. Only the physical and mental sensations count. And to allow the patient to become aware of these sensations and to give meaning to his creative expression, the presence of a third party is necessary. This is the art therapist. Without his intervention, there is no therapy. It is he who marks out, illuminates and secures the patient’s journey, following his rhythm and helping him to overcome his blockages and keep his capacity for self-criticism at bay.
5 activities for Self-discovery through art
It is not necessary to be an artist to practice artistic activities. Indeed, art therapy activities are specifically designed so that everyone can do them, whatever your artistic skills. It’s a great activity to discover yourself and your creative power to reveal the artist in you.
Art therapy activities are a great way to deepen your self-knowledge. Through fun activities, find out what motivates you and what keeps you stuck. Most importantly, remember your worth.
Too often we are stuck in a loop of negative self-talk, that we need a little nudge to get out of it and get back on track. Most of our daily problems could be solved if we understood each other better.
For most of these activities, you will only need a pen and paper.
1. HOW TO PAINT YOUR EMOTIONS
Start by choosing your medium. Take what you feel most comfortable with or have on hand. You can also use different mediums. For example, you can combine watercolors and markers. Just make sure you have at least 3 colors available. Take a sheet of paper, heavier or lighter depending on the medium you will use.
When everything is ready, pay attention to how you feel. Maybe you won’t be sure how you’re supposed to do this, or you’ll feel excited to try this new thing. Whatever you feel, try to put it down on paper. Don’t think about what you’re doing, don’t choose colors, just let your hands do what they feel like doing. Put your conscious mind to rest and let your unconscious express itself through your hands. If a word or phrase comes to mind, write it down. Maybe you will feel the need to switch hands or close your eyes, just do it. Do whatever comes to mind, without thinking, and above all without judging.
Whenever the need to quit arises, put down your pen or a brush. That’s all. Your job is done.
BENEFITS OF PAINTING YOUR EMOTIONS
When you are done painting, observe how you feel. Just observe, don’t give any opinion or judgment on your feelings. Now take a look at your work, again without judging, just look at it and write down the thoughts that come to mind while looking at it. If you wrote down a few words, read them and take a moment to think about what those words mean to you.
Repeat this activity once a week or when you feel strong emotions. And just observe, without judgment. If you really let your unconsciousness do the work, you should uncover your inner thoughts, desires, fears, and maybe even blockages you weren’t aware of.
2. HOW TO CREATE A MESS IN COLLAGE
Find pictures, or create your own, that represent everything that clutters your life. Clutter can be anything from things to habits, people whose energy is dragging you down, even negative thoughts.
Go through your life and see what takes up your space, time and energy. Anything that doesn’t bring you happiness, peace, or growth is a mess.
Glue all these images onto one piece of paper. This is your messy collage
BENEFITS OF CREATING A MESS IN COLLAGE
Only by becoming aware of the clutter in your life can you begin to empty your life to make room for better things. Once in a while, take a look at your clutter collage and see what might be going on. By eliminating clutter, we free ourselves from a big burden and open our lives to new things.
3. HOW TO CREATE A LIFE CALENDAR
Draw a long line across the entire paper. At the beginning of the line mark the day of your birth and at the end mark the day of today. At equal distances on the line, mark each year from your birth until today.
Now start writing in all the important moments of your life. It could be graduation, birthdays of important people, change of job, important achievement, beginning and end of a relationship, new friendships, a trip, a disease, a book. Really everything that is or was at the time important to you.
Choose different colors, write bigger or smaller words depending on their importance. Think about your life and try to remember as many memories as possible.
Now, if you want, you can do the future timeline.
Turn the page and draw a long line all over the paper again. Only this time, the first mark is today’s date and there is no ending mark. You don’t have to mark years, just do at random distances (so you wish it to happen) important moments you would like to see happen. All your dreams and wishes for the future.
BENEFITS OF CREATING A LIFE CALENDAR
It is a reflective activity that makes you look back on your life and everything that has happened to you. It should show you how far you’ve come, how far you’ve been. It should help you put your whole life into perspective. And also, if you decide to do so, a plan for the future you want.
4.CHOW TO DRAW YOURSELF LIKE A TREE
Create a tree with branching roots and a lofty, leafy treetop (big enough to hold one or a few words). List your traits, prowess, abilities, and excellent habits under each root. Additionally, list all the things you want to get better at, all the things you want to study, and all the behaviors you want to develop on the papers.
BENEFITS OF DRAWING YOURSELF AS A TREE
This is a fantastic game that will get you thinking positively about yourself and recalling all your wonderful qualities because we tend to focus on our defects so much. And every talent you haven’t yet mastered.
5. HOW TO CREATE MAPPING YOUR THOUGHTS
First, start by choosing a main theme, choose an area of your life that you want to shed light on. It can be anything like dreams, fears, habits. Or if you have a lot of different thoughts and want to make sense of them and put them in order, choose a theme My minds .
Second, take a sheet of paper and draw a circle in the middle with the chosen theme written inside.
Third, choose how you want to fill in your mind map. You can do this in three ways.
- level by level – first you complete all 1. levels of branches, these are direct links to the main topic, then you complete all 2. levels, then if necessary all 3. levels, etc.
- branch by branch – you complete an entire branch, with all its levels, before moving on to another branch
- freestyle – fill in freely, as thoughts come to you, in no particular order
BENEFITS OF MAPPING YOUR THOUGHTS
Topics defined by mind mapping will help you learn more about certain aspects of yourself. On the other hand, mind mapping current thoughts will give you clarity and order when your thoughts (life) become chaotic. This can be especially useful if you have an important decision to make.
Now just choose an activity and start discovering the hidden parts of yourself!
Self-discovery through art therapy
8 Techniques For Self-discovery through art
Isn’t it true that knowing oneself is essential to everything?
It’s essential for developing sincere, genuine connections and for making choices that make us happy and fulfilled.
Because the opposite occurs when we lack self-awareness: “Ignoring our own thoughts and feelings or attempting to be someone we are not frequently results in increased tension and anxiety, frustration in our relationships, and feelings of self-doubt.
The great thing is that there are many intriguing, enjoyable, and original ways that art can help us develop self-awareness. Here are eight methods you can use.
Vision for the Future
Create a collage by gathering pictures and words that express what you desire in life. Include pictures that speak to you, even if you have no idea why. Pay special attention to how the visuals affect you. Thinking back on your finished collage.
Mask Creation
This method was developed by Erin McKeen, LMFT, ATR, a private practice licensed marriage and family therapist who is also a registered art therapist. Choose words, images, or photographs on the inside of your mask to represent what you hide from the outside world. Choose words, images, and photographs for the outside of your mask that reflect what you let the world see about yourself or how other people see you.
Dream Drawings
Regularly draw your dreams, or do other types of art based on them. Consider the meaning of the dream and how it relates to your life while you reflect on the artwork. See if you can spot any trends or changes over time.
Primary Values
McKeen, a specialist in treating depression, anxiety, grief and loss, identity and self-esteem, divorce, blended families, trauma, LGBTQ issues, and women’s difficulties, advised people to consider their underlying values and beliefs. She provided the following illustration of how your sketch might appear: “Family holding hands around a fire, signifying hard work and passion, and expressing family values. People are depicted in a rainbow of colors to symbolize equality. Each team member has a heart that stands for respect and love.
Mandala Journal
Draw a mandala (a Sanskrit word for “circle”) each day. According to Diana C. Pitaru, Hindi monks used to draw mandalas in the sand, often spending years on a single design before destroying it.
Working instinctively and purposefully on each mandala requires attention to what seems right for you at the moment.
The only requirement is to adhere to the circular layout. Observe how your mandalas alter over time, how they mirror your thoughts and emotions for the day, or how you might connect to symbols that have special value to you.
Printable Mandala Journal – Art B Zen
Mindful Meditation
Spend some time in meditation (or listen to a guided meditation or play music). Observe the ideas, emotions, or images that come to mind, then express yourself via art.
Consider all of the various aspects of your personality, roles, strengths, and shortcomings that contribute to who you are.
Then gradually show each of these components. As you begin to consider the various facets of your personality, you’ll begin to pay attention to how they appear in your day-to-day activities—and you’ll find new aspects you wish to include.
Some people enjoy compiling these images into tiny books or putting one of each on a tiny card to make a “deck” of them.
Process Exploration
Concentrate on the process while you create any of the following works of art. According to Mehlomakulu, think about the following inquiries: What does the creating of your art reveal about you? What aspects of your behavior in life does it reflect? What ideas cross your mind as you create your art? Do you start with an end goal in mind or do you just see what happens? How do you react when things go wrong or unexpectedly?
Having an art journal to keep the art you create, the reflections you have about each piece, and journal entries about anything that’s on your mind. “Having everything together in one place allows you to see patterns, look back at changes, over time, and have a more complete picture of yourself.”
Consider working with an art therapist, who can help you to spot new patterns you didn’t notice on your own and teach you to see the deeper meaning in your art.
A special, potent approach to connect to our inner worlds is through the creation of art. It is a unique way to access our ideas, feelings, and memories that is secure and creative.
Additionally, it encourages us to use our creativity, which is something we don’t do very often.
We can peel back our many, many layers by creating art. And the more we reveal about ourselves, the more we comprehend who we are. The simpler it is to design a lovely life based on your unique requirements, desires, and wishes.
When Art & wellbeing meet
Since the beginnings of our civilization, Man has always expressed himself through Art. This need to create is innate, almost vital.
It allows you to express yourself, to register in time, to share, to escape, to free yourself and to unload your emotions…
Art therefore does not have the sole aim of achieving an aesthetic ideal.
It is a nurturing, liberating creative act, a means of expressing our emotions, our ideals.
In a symphony of the senses, Art is an extension of itself into matter, a revelation of the depths of our Being.
To allow your inner world to express itself, free itself and build itself, multiple working media will be available: painting, sculpture, drawing (felt pen, charcoal, chalk, etc.), speaking out, land art, writing, visualization , meditation …
This wealth of possibilities and mediations makes it possible to respect everyone’s sensitivity, to play with materials, textures, volumes according to the theme of the workshops and the desired goals.
Understanding the blockages, filters of the past, naming your limiting standards participate in freeing yourself from a straitjacket to redefine yourself in the present.
The Art of creating, renewing itself at every moment!
The goal of Art Therapy is of course to go beyond the act of creation by decoding artistic productions:
Putting down words, giving a dimension to being, opening up new perspectives.
Art has always been for me a support to create, escape, free myself, … but also a way to discover myself and understand who I was.
This universe is not governed by rules, standards to be respected. We are the frame, the form, the creator…
It offers a space of infinite freedom where passion comes alive, our personality expresses itself, creativity works to give shape in this extension of oneself. From this stems a creation imprinted with our identity.
It is up to each of us to play in this universe, to experience freedom, to awaken our creativity.
Self-discovery through art therapy
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