Art psychotherapy, which exploits the possibilities of art and the principles of psychotherapy, is a recognised therapeutic intervention and helps in the acquisition of self-awareness, in encouraging creativity and in improving the quality of everyday lives.
In response to the social and economic crisis in Greece and beyond, the National Museum of Contemporary Art in Athens and the First Psychiatric Department of the University of Athens created a group art psychotherapy programme called Exploring the Museum's Images - Exploring My Image.
This project aims to give a message of mobilisation, creation and hope. Its recognises the contribution of art to the development of critical thinking, the recollection of personal experiences and the cultivation of self-expression, dialogue and cooperation.
The National Museum of Contemporary Art was considered for this programme because it inspires creativity and fosters social inclusion, and because being in the museum made people feel valued and motivated to express themselves.
Participants were selected through an open call and a series of pre-group interviews that assessed their motivation, love of art, willingness to be part of a group and desire to address emotional difficulties. There was a €100 fee that could be paid in installments, reduced to €80 if they paid in advance.
Nineteen people took part and the project was split into two parts; the first running between January-March 2017 and the second between October-December 2017. Over each three-month period, participants attended a total of 12 two-hour sessions a week, during which they engaged with exhibited artworks at the museum and created their own.
The coordinators used a group psychodynamic art therapy framework to assist in the enhancement of the participants’ wellbeing. They were impressed by the participants creativity and imaginative way of using materials, as well as the recognition of the power of art psychotherapy.
Participants reported that it was a positive and helpful process.
The coordinators’ evaluation found that it would be have been better to have had a longer preparation period during the selection process, and to extend the overall duration of the program.
Due to the positive feedback and the outcome of the program the programme will continue with two or more groups on an annual basis.
Elisabeth Ioannides is an education curator at the National Museum of Contemporary Art and Aphrodite Pantagoutsou is a psychiatric occupational therapist and an art psychotherapist at the First Psychiatric Department of the University of Athens, Eginition Hospital, Greece
Links
Information on the first pilot art psychotherapy group in the Canadian Art Therapy Association Journal
Art Therapy in Museums and Galleries
In response to the social and economic crisis in Greece and beyond, the National Museum of Contemporary Art in Athens and the First Psychiatric Department of the University of Athens created a group art psychotherapy programme called Exploring the Museum's Images - Exploring My Image.
This project aims to give a message of mobilisation, creation and hope. Its recognises the contribution of art to the development of critical thinking, the recollection of personal experiences and the cultivation of self-expression, dialogue and cooperation.
The National Museum of Contemporary Art was considered for this programme because it inspires creativity and fosters social inclusion, and because being in the museum made people feel valued and motivated to express themselves.
Participants were selected through an open call and a series of pre-group interviews that assessed their motivation, love of art, willingness to be part of a group and desire to address emotional difficulties. There was a €100 fee that could be paid in installments, reduced to €80 if they paid in advance.
Nineteen people took part and the project was split into two parts; the first running between January-March 2017 and the second between October-December 2017. Over each three-month period, participants attended a total of 12 two-hour sessions a week, during which they engaged with exhibited artworks at the museum and created their own.
The coordinators used a group psychodynamic art therapy framework to assist in the enhancement of the participants’ wellbeing. They were impressed by the participants creativity and imaginative way of using materials, as well as the recognition of the power of art psychotherapy.
Participants reported that it was a positive and helpful process.
The coordinators’ evaluation found that it would be have been better to have had a longer preparation period during the selection process, and to extend the overall duration of the program.
Due to the positive feedback and the outcome of the program the programme will continue with two or more groups on an annual basis.
Elisabeth Ioannides is an education curator at the National Museum of Contemporary Art and Aphrodite Pantagoutsou is a psychiatric occupational therapist and an art psychotherapist at the First Psychiatric Department of the University of Athens, Eginition Hospital, Greece
Links
Information on the first pilot art psychotherapy group in the Canadian Art Therapy Association Journal
Art Therapy in Museums and Galleries
