• Art therapy is a master’s level mental health profession that incorporates art-making and creativity as a therapeutic and healing process.

• Arts therapist serves as an empathic listener and observer who offer guidance in a variety of challenges including; mental illness, trauma, loss, substance abuse and eating disorders.

• Art therapy can be used as a tool for reducing anxiety and promoting relaxation by entering flow state and releasing emotional tension through self-expression so that we can be less reactive and more responsive in our lives.

• Art therapy provides a safe space to express difficult feelings with the gentle, non-judgmental support of an art therapist.

• When we allow difficult feelings to emerge through images, we are able to gain awareness on the root of those problems through the processing of the artwork. Self-awareness opens the doorway for change to occur.

• There is no wrong or right in art therapy, and it does not require any prior artistic training.

• Art therapy practice requires knowledge of visual art (drawing, painting, sculpture, and other art forms) and the creative process, as well as of human development, psychological, and counseling theories and techniques.

• Through the open-hearted playfulness of creativity, we learn to trust our intuition and access our inner guide.

Source: American Art Therapy Association & J.Lepke