Spiritual Directions - Strawberry Tree Art Therapy Studio

Art Therapy is a way to express feelings when words are inadequate or unavailable.

Art Therapy is a human service profession providing effective treatment for clients of all ages, races and cultural backgrounds.

No art experience is required. Using the art process places emphasis on the creative exploration and not on the art product.

Feelings, wishes and thoughts express themselves symbolically through the art process, creating personal imagery. Reflecting on the finished image and reviewing the process can lead to greater insight and a greater sense of self-understanding.

Art Therapy provides a supportive and nonjudgmental environment for exploring inner feelings. This visual language lays the necessary groundwork for healing, personal growth and positive change.

If you, or someone you know, finds it difficult to put feelings into words, Art Therapy can satisfy this human need to communicate on a visual level.

Who Benefits From Art Therapy?

Everyone --Children, Adolescents, Adults and Elders can benefit from Art Therapy when experiencing emotional difficulties such as:

Whether you need assistance with life's difficulties or simply someone to communicate with, Art Therapy may be able to help you.

I offer a safe and confidential environment where you can relax and explore the self while working through issues that may be inhibiting your sense of well-being.

Why Use Art Therapy?

Art Therapy may be a primary form of therapy or used adjunctively with other therapies as part of a holistic treatment plan. This gentle and creative approach puts the focus on the client. Psychotherapeutic approaches may include a range of: Humanistic, Archetypal, Psychodynamic, Cognitive, Behavioural and Developmental theoretical frameworks.

Because Art Therapy can satisfy the human need to communicate on a visual level it:

Initiates dialogue through creativity and promotes ability to make decisions.
Externalizes feelings and experiences in sculptural or pictorial form.
Helps to identify problems that may underlie patterns of self-destructive behaviours.
Fortifies an active role in conflict resolution.
Strengthens and empowers.
Enhances self-awareness and allows the individual to explore new possibilities.

We are all multidimensional beings living simultaneously on many levels, and we are not aware of it. When we attempt to work out our problems on the conscious level, resolutions often do not encounter the deeper levels of our being, and stress continues.

The pace of modern lifestyle is a major stress for many of us. Do we go at such a speed that we cannot really see what is truly happening? Are our daily schedules too hectic? Are we missing opportunities because our pace does not allow us to really see things present? A good metaphor is the turtle, one of the oldest animals on our beautiful earth. In world mythology, the ancient turtle symbolized mother earth, longevity and self reliance. The turtle is characteristically slow, but this quality also speaks of the persistence and tenacity necessary to achieve goals. Just think of the classic children's tale of the tortoise and the hare. The tortoise won by displaying determination, unlike the distraction shown by the flurrying hare. The inherent slowness of the turtle can be a gentle reminder that slowing down may also help us to fully experience what is really happening. By focusing on the present we awaken and heighten our creative sensibilities.

The Strawberry Tree Art Studio is a Program of Spiritual Directions
1107 - 14th Avenue S.W. Calgary, Alberta
(Around the corner from Spiritual Directions' main office)
To Register phone: 403-210-2802, Email: teaching@spiritualdirections.com

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Strawberry Tree Art Studio

What is Art Therapy?

Who Benefits From Art Therapy?

Why Use Art Therapy?