Art Therapy Research Paper

Therapy is a treatment intended to relieve or heal people. Over the years, therapy has developed and branched out into many different forms. One of the newest additions is art therapy. Art Therapy was founded in the 1940’s and people are seeing the benefits of going to a session. This paper will discuss about the founding of this beautiful technique; how the therapy works, materials that can be used, and the American Art Therapy Association. Art has been in this world for many years, it can be dated all the way back to the cavemen. Cavemen used it as a communication, today people use art to express their feelings, thoughts and opinions. Art can be an escape from reality or a release of pent up feelings. Art can be used for so many things,

While being treated in a sanatorium for tuberculosis, this artist suggested participating in art projects to his fellow patients. This was just the beginning for him and he discusses much of his work as an art therapist in his book “Art Versus Illness” (arttherapyjournal.org). “By the mid-twentieth century, asylums were being replaced by mental hospitals where patients were treated with talking and community-based therapies,” (http://www.independent.co.uk/). From then on, art therapy expanded and became helpful to

The association holds conferences to talk about their research, findings and methods to expand art therapy. The organization is made up of professional and licensed art therapists. This group gives a therapist resources to do an internship or partnership in other organizations. An example is the Americans for the Arts (AFA), which helps support the arts in America. Another example is the National Coalition of Creative Arts Therapies Associations (NCCATA), which represents individual members of creative art therapy associations. The AATA has a mission and vision statement that helps show what the organization does. The mission statement says: “The mission of the American Art Therapy Association is to advocate for expansion of access to professional art therapists and lead the nation in the advancement of art therapy as a regulated mental health and human services profession… Their vision statement states: the services of licensed, culturally proficient art therapists are available to all individuals, families, and communities”