Is Art Therapy the same thing as art classes in Encinitas

This blog has been updated from the original Nov. 2020 post.

One of the things I love about Encinitas is the atmosphere of creativity and Encinitas art, like the mosaics at the Santa Fe Drive undercrossing.

Many people who live in Encinitas enjoy the arts and often identify themselves as artists as well. There are typically opportunities to participate in a variety of music and art classes.

As a credentialed San Diego Art Therapy professional, I sometimes get asked if Art Therapy is the same as attending art classes.

There are several differences, but the main distinction is that when you meet with an Art Therapist, you are meeting with a licensed mental health professional. When you attend an art class, you are going to meet with a teacher. The teacher, who may hold a degree in art or education, typically is not a psychotherapist or counselor.  

One of the similarities, and perhaps part of the confusion, is the use of the same materials in art classes as in Art Therapy.

In art classes, a teacher usually provides lessons, and teaches you skills on how to paint, or draw, or make clay pieces on a potter’s wheel. The goal will be to create finished pieces of art and improve your skills. In therapy, a credentialed art therapist has art training and they demonstrate how to use materials to help facilitate your creative expression. You may also work with clay, draw, or paint, but the end goal is not for you to learn how to create a beautiful piece of artwork.

So, what is the goal of Art Therapy in San Diego if it’s not to create a beautiful piece of artwork? The goal is to address the specific issue that brought you to therapy. For some that might be a major life transition, a traumatic event, or issues of grief & loss.

You are more likely to create a deeply personal and authentic expression of who you are and what you are experiencing in Art Therapy.

As a way to compare, here is an example. If you experience the death of a family member, attending art classes, focusing on learning how to draw may help distract you for an hour a week from the pain of mourning. You may also connect with others and feel a sense of support in the community. In this way, creating art would be a beneficial and therapeutic experience that I would highly recommend.  However, this is not considered Art Therapy.

Art Therapy is first and foremost, mental health counseling with a licensed professional. It’s in therapy where you can address the many emotions that accompany grieving.  You may have unresolved feelings due to the nature of the relationship, or the circumstances surrounding the death. Those feelings are more likely resolved in therapy, especially if the grief is complicated or prolonged.

Participating in therapy would be a place where you could safely and openly talk about your loved one, including the not so loved parts, and how you experienced their death.  In the context of an Art Therapy session, you might create images of memories of that loved one, about how you wished the relationship had been. Artwork may be used to memorialize the person, using photos, or things they gave you that you want to treasure. 

In Art Therapy, there’s the beneficial experience of creating art, and the opportunity to talk about the deeper meaning as you are guided and supported along the way.  

Mental health professionals are trained to listen and be with you in the midst of your suffering.  In Art Therapy, images can reach deeper than words at a time when sentences may feel shallow and meaningless, and you feel like talking very little.

As an Art Therapist in San Diego, with experience with bereaved children and adults, I know the power of quiet, and being present, supporting someone as they create. I know it can be hard to be with others, when you sense they are trying to fix you, bandage your pain, and get you to just move on.  In Art Therapy you have someone witnessing as you externalize your inner struggle. Someone to help you process all the feelings as they wash over you. You’re not left alone in your feelings. 

Complimentary consultation with a Credentialed Art Therapist.

If you are looking for expressive experiences to work through grief and loss issues, or support your mental health and wellbeing, I can help. As a Registered Art Therapist in San Diego, CA, I have helped children and adults tell their stories and share their emotions in powerful ways using creative expression. To learn more about art therapy for anxiety and trauma, click here.

I provide in-person Art Therapy from an office in San Marcos, CA, and virtual Art Therapy for those throughout San Diego and California.

I encourage you, if you are interested in participating in Art Therapy, to seek out an art therapist credentialed through the Art Therapy Credential Board (ATCB). As a national credentialing board, the ATCB ensures the educational and professional standards needed to be a qualified art therapist are met and maintained.  This is essential in any mental health field to provide an ethical standard of care and improve treatment outcomes.