Materials presented in this portal are there to support you through a journey with the power of Expressive Arts.

The definition of Expressive Arts healing is broad and ever-changing. There are various approaches from image interpretations to active visualisation. With the advancement in technology, digital art therapy and online art therapy are also increasingly common.

Contrary to common beliefs, arts- based healing is not about being good at art. It is a way of activating another part of your brain.

You do not need to be talented. The process is for personal growth- and you do not need to show your work to anyone unless you want to.

Here are some of the Creative Arts modalities we draw on:

Visual Art

Traditional Art therapy uses art media as a form of expression and communication. This may involve drawing, painting, collage, clay-work, digital art and photography. The work is not used to diagnose but to express your thoughts and feelings. In recent years, art therapists are increasingly informed by attachment-based psychotherapy. It is also combined with approaches such as psycho-educational, mindfulness and mentalization-based treatments, compassion-focussed and cognitive analytic therapies. Mounting evidence in neuroscience suggests visual art heals us not only on a cognitive and surface level but in a deeply emotional and sometimes unconscious way.

Photographic Work

Photographs contain meanings beyond their visual contents, in ways that words alone cannot express. They hold stories and feelings that would otherwise be lost. What we find by reflecting on a photo might surprise us- it acts as a bridge between our ‘known self’ and our unconscious self, between our past and our present, and between our outer and inner ways of being.

For example, a self-portrait is a powerful tool for learning about our self-image. Family albums and biographical snapshots give us insights into our interpersonal dynamic, the trauma we carry, the love that heals us, and how our past affects our present.

Pictures we take and collect tell us what matters to us, our unique perspective of the world. Through a symbolic system and a set of judgement that is private and personal to us, we gain insights into our past and present.

Alongside your physical visual journal, you are encouraged to take advantage of the camera in your smartphone and create a visual, photographic journey.

Drama

The use of drama and movement can achieve emotional integration and personal growth. It is an active approach that helps you tell your story, reach a catharsis, deepen your emotional experience. Through the art of roleplay, we can gain perspective on our life experience. Some of the things we might do are Storytelling, Role-playing, Rituals, Improvisation, Mime, creative script writing.

Poetry

We can use written and spoken word for healing and personal growth. Through the use of poetry, literature, visual journals and song lyrics, we will explore materials hidden in your unconscious, and help you integrate them into your psyche. Poetry is helpful in this process as it enables you to express emotions that might otherwise be difficult to express. It also opens you up to new ways of seeing your life.

Dreamwork

Unlike dream interpretation, dreamwork is not about finding at a particular dream meaning. It is an organic process that explores deeply unconscious thoughts, desires, motives and emotions. While these dreams are personal to you, the symbolic meaning of them often touches on something universal. Therefore, exploration of Jungian archetypes is a big part of this process. I may ask you to keep a dream journal to ‘catch’ your dreams. This is an extremely powerful technique when it comes to exploring what is unknown to us.

Bibliotherapy

Bibliotherapy involves reading specific texts with the purpose of healing. I may prescribe readings on philosophy, poetry, novels and creative non-fiction, and sometimes graphic novels or even children’s books. Bibliotherapy can consist solely of reading, or complemented with art- based activities. There is good evidence that books can help people with many emotional and psychological issues.

Gestalt Psychology

Gestalt is a psychotherapeutic approach developed by psychologist Fritz Perls. This approach focuses on the present moment, and on immediate thoughts and feelings, make it a playful, spontaneous and expressive. This approach involves action, rather than mere talk therapy. The work often uses role-playing to aid the resolution of past conflicts. Through various experiments, I will support you to experience something new directly, so you have an embodied experience of positive changes, which is ultimately the most sustaining.

Shadow Work

Do you sometimes find yourself acting in ways that are ‘out-of-character’? Do you struggle with powerful surges of emotions such as anger or envy and cannot legitimise their causes? Do you sometimes feel surprised by aspects of your personality?

In Jungian psychology, Shadow is the unconscious aspects of our personality. When suppressed or projected, our Shadow can become destructive; it may erupt in depression, self-directed aggression or interpersonal hostility. It takes a lot of energy to continually push down parts of ourselves, which may cause chronic fatigue. Expressive Arts is an effective way of exploring our unconscious and pre-conscious Shadows.