Art therapy is not only for people who already create or make art. Art therapy does not require any artistic ability because it’s all about expressing oneself (the art process), and not the final product. An art therapy process may manifest as scribbling, drawing shapes, putting down paint blobs, or kneading a lump of clay.

All art materials are demonstrated and clarified to clients by the art therapist and clients are fully supported throughout the art session and all questions are welcomed.

Sometimes being an artist or crafter may be a hinderance as some creatives may come with a mindset of a finished product to be displayed or sold. An art therapist will assist artists and creatives in allowing the art process to be explored and to take their artist hat off and just be present as a client.

Creative therapies do not rely on artistic knowledge or ability because they work by accessing imagination and creativity, qualities which all human beings possess, in order to generate new models of living and contribute to the development of a more integrated sense of self. Art helps access the unconscious and move perspectives into the conscious.