Artful Therapy

Use the therapeutic potential of art to make progress in your practiceArtful Therapy shows you how to use art to make a difference in therapy. Using visual imagery and art creation, you can help people with medical problems understand how they feel about their illness; victims of abuse "tell without talking"; and substance abuse and eating disorder clients tap into unresolved issues. These are just a few examples of how the power of art can improve your practice.Ideal for mental health professionals and allied workers with little or no art background, this accessible and proven guide takes you through the techniques of using art and visual imagery, and shows you how they can benefit clients of varying ages and abilities. With the art therapy tools provided, you can open potentially groundbreaking new dialogues with your clients.Author Judith Aron Rubin draws on more than forty years experience as an art therapist to help you maximize the value of art as a therapeutic tool, in both the mental health disciplines, such as psychology and social work, and related specialties.An accompanying DVD contains models for practitioners, showing art therapy being used in actual clinical practice. The DVD clearly models: Initiating the art-making process Using art in assessment Using mental imagery, with or without art Implementing other art forms-such as drama and music-in therapy Using art with a variety of client types, including children, families, and groups Assigning art as "homework" Whether or not you have used art therapy with your clients or are thinking about integrating art therapy in your practice, making the most of art in the clinical setting begins with Artful Therapy.

Judith Aron Rubin, PhD, ATR-BC, is a licensed psychologist and faculty member of the University of Pittsburgh and the Pittsburgh Psychoanalytic Society and Institute. She is a former president of the American Art Therapy Association, the author of five books, and the creator of five teaching films. She consults, lectures, and gives workshops across the country as well as abroad, and is preparing a series of art therapy teaching tapes for students and professionals.