THE ART THERAPIST
I am a qualified Art Therapist with a Masters in Therapeutic Arts Practice from MIECAT (Melbourne Institute of Experiential Creative Art Therapy) with experience providing one-on-one sessions for children, young people and adults, running groups, as well as working in the community. Cohorts that I have worked with include clients on the Autism spectrum, clients with ADHD, bipolar disorder, dementia, schizophrenia, depression and anxiety. I enjoy working with clients of all ages, sexual orientation and gender presentations.
I wrote my thesis about the “relationship” between therapist and client playing a pivotal role in the therapeutic process, and that incorporating art as the ‘modality’ allows for a sense of playfulness, curiosity and deeper understanding.
I strongly believe that we are our own truth maker with an ability to figure out what is true, right and real for each of us, however, I also believe sometimes we might need help and/or guidance in order to figure out what our truth looks like.
My role as a therapist isn’t to give a client the answer to their questions (or a solution to any problems) but instead help them figure out what their own truth is.
I value nurturing and supporting clients through their enquiry process helping them discover ‘what else is there’ in relation to their lived experience and understanding its importance. I value providing compassion and empathy, whilst also gently challenging clients to think beyond what they know. I believe in strengthening self-awareness and self-compassion, as well as helping a client build their resilience and finding a greater sense of purpose in their lives.
As a self-taught artist my own creative outlet is abstract painting, and as a result, I appreciate the beauty of allowing the creative journey to unfold naturally and to remain curious about unknown truths that present themselves.
I believe that remaining playful, curious and having a sense of willing to experiment are paramount to the success of art therapy, and I value providing a space that encourages these.
OTHER QUALIFICATIONS
Bachelor of Arts (majoring in Media and Cultural Studies)
Advance Diploma of Communications
Diploma of Journalism
Diploma of Event Management
MY CORE PROFESSIONAL VALUES AS AN ART THERAPIST
It’s important for me as an Art Therapist to have a clear understanding of what my professional values are, what they mean both to me and the work I do.
The core values I uphold as an Art Therapist are:
-
I understand that we’re all ‘doing the best we can’ in any and every situation, regardless of the outcome or how we engage within an experience. With this understanding I pride myself on providing a space free of judgement of my clients - their thoughts, feelings and the lived experience they share.
-
I feel that to ‘be of service’ whilst in relationship with a client starts with understanding that every client has individual needs when it comes to therapeutically enquiring in to lived experience.
As a result, the way in which I engage with one client will often differ from how I engage with another. For me, it’s about working with a client to best understand how we can apply art therapy to better understanding an individual’s needs.
-
“Holding space” for a client first and foremost means allowing the client to navigate their own enquiry process.
My role as an art therapist is to help a client navigate their truth finding.
-
For me, “being authentic” is about not having to put on a front or put on a show about who we are, how we’re feeling or what our thoughts or emotions are on any particular subject.
And as much as I encourage this of clients, I honour this value by remaining authentic whilst in relationship with clients.
-
I feel this goes hand-in-hand with being ‘non-judgemental’. In addition to providing a space free of judgement, I also value my ability to remain “open” to the possibilities of client’s lived experiencing, including how they perceive and interpret this experiencing.
The way I listen and engage as a therapist is from a mindset that ‘anything is possible’, that “reality” and our experiencing of life is subjective, and that all experiencing has a sense of truth to it.
In addition to my own professional values, I’m a member of Australian, New Zealand and Asian Creative Arts Therapies Association (ANZACATA), the peak professional body representing creative arts therapists in Australia, New Zealand and the Asia/Pacific region.
Being a member of ANZACATA requires me to uphold a code of ethics that:
Promotes the best interests of the client
Respects confidentiality
Respects professional boundaries
Informs professional responsibility
Maintains the highest standards of creative arts therapy practice
You can find the code of ethics on the ANZACATA website.