The Art Effect Promotes Healing
Art created in the Arts for Healing programs at The Art Effect.
Source: The Art Effect
On any given day, young artists can be found at The Art Effect in Poughkeepsie moving paintbrushes and pencils across their papers. Creating art allows people a safe space to explore themselves and their creativity, and for many, it promotes healing.
“I've witnessed firsthand how creating art can help children, youth and adults gain coping mechanisms as well as de-stressing and emotional processing strategies,” The Art Effect’s Director of Programs Mary Ellen Iatropoulos said. “Therapeutic arts instruction can also provide a space in which to safely explore negative thoughts, experiences and feelings in a positive and constructive way.”
The Art Effect is a nonprofit organization that provides opportunities for young people to explore visual arts and media. They offer a wide range of classes such as animation, drawing, painting, comics, music and filmmaking, to name a few. The organization provides opportunities to young people aged four to 19, as well as adults who can take classes, work on professional development, and participate in the Arts for Healing program.
“We have worked with senior citizens who have expressed that, while they are creating art, they forget their troubles and stresses of the outside world, and reconnect with themselves,” Iatropoulos said.
The majority of programs at The Art Effect are goal-oriented and help students in terms of college access, portfolio-building, job training and workforce development. However, special courses such as the Arts for Healing program focus solely on creating art for therapeutic benefits.
“A child who learns to process and cope through making art in one of our classes leaves with a skill and experience they can use and replicate when needed,” Iatropoulos said.
In the Arts for Healing program, they teach both art therapy and therapeutic arts instruction. The art therapy courses are taught by a certified art therapist while the therapeutic arts are taught by an art educator. For people on the autism spectrum, a session often involves an “open-ended and discipline-specific project.” For other clients, there may be less structure which allows them to decide what they want to create based on their feelings that day.
“Lots of leniency and understanding happens for those who need to take breaks or who get overwhelmed,” Iatropoulos said. “Lots of caring and gentle conversation happens between the instructors and the participants, ranging from the choice of colors to guided emotional processing questions.”
In addition to its own programs, The Art Effect also partners with other organizations to promote healing within a variety of groups. In the past, they have worked with the Children's Home of Poughkeepsie, The C.O.L.O.R.S. Foundation, Vassar Warner Senior Residence, Ramapo for Children and Clinton Community Library's Creative Aging Program.
When The Art Effect partnered with The C.O.L.O.R.S. Foundation, they had students create paintings of their most painful memories. The C.O.L.O.R.S. Foundation is an organization in Poughkeepsie that strives to bridge gaps and create unity among different groups.
“The students were able to address their most painful memory through art as a form of expression and acceptance,” The C.O.L.O.R.S. Foundation Program Coordinator Delsie Howey said. “Their canvas serves as a daily dose of therapy in order for them to cope and understand their experience through victory and not pity.”
Art therapy is a way for people to express themselves in an alternate form. However, the therapeutic benefits of art aren’t limited to those who are involved in specific art therapy programs. Rather, just picking up a pencil and doodling can be an effective way to release stress and feel present in the moment. While art therapy is a distinct discipline of mental health treatment, Iatropoulos believes anyone can receive benefits from creating art.
“I encourage anyone reading this to stop what they're doing, go make some lines on paper with a pen or pencil, and embrace the transformative potential of making art at any level,” Iatropoulos said.