In an attempt to aid people who struggle with difficulties such as anxiety and depression, art therapists encourage these individuals to create art as a form of therapy.
According to Very Well Mind, art therapy helps people develop individuality and discover ways to deal with their mental difficulties. These coping skills aid people who experience different forms of internal challenges.
“Art therapy is using art in a way that is calming or beneficial,” art teacher Alexandra LaBarr said. “It’s really popular for those with anxiety or PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder) because it helps them express things that are hard to say, so they can put that emotion on paper as a way to process.”
A past study was conducted which showed that a person’s anxiety levels are likely to reduce after creating art for an hour or less. Regardless of prior training or talent, the results showed that art therapy benefited people of numerous demographics.
“In studies of adults who experienced trauma, art therapy was found to significantly reduce trauma symptoms and decrease levels of depression,” Very Well Mind author Kendra Cherry said. “One study found that art therapy reduced depression and increased self-esteem in older adults living in nursing homes.”
Although beneficial to those who have received a medical diagnosis, creating art can also benefit those without a diagnosis, including students and teachers.
“In school when we’re doing lessons and talking about stressful stuff, like a college application, just doing a quick doodle helps when I’m stressed,” senior Wendy Espinoza said.
With the stress that comes as the school year begins, taking an art class is one way to lower the stress of a student. Art classes such as foundations of art, ceramics, and commercial arts all grant students the opportunity to destress in the midst of a difficult school day.
“I think that art classes can be a good form of relaxation, or emotional expression for students to practice,” art teacher Danielle Perry said.
With the wide variety of art mediums available for students and others to practice, multiple people find some more beneficial than others.
“I find throwing [clay] on the wheel the most relaxing out of all the art mediums,” LaBarr said. “I like the wheel because it’s usually relaxing because it’s very methodical and very repetitive.”
Although ceramics is found to contribute to reducing stress levels, the clay and tools needed are not available to many people. Consequently, art that can be practiced with pencils or everyday objects is more popular than art that requires specific tools-due to accessibility.
“I think drawing zentangles is another good way to relax because they’re very repetitive and pattern-based,” LaBarr said. “It helps you not think too much about whatever’s going on because you’re just thinking about the repetition of the pattern.”
After conducting a study questioning whether zentangles (an abstract form of art containing structured patterns) are a good stress reliever, PubMed Central reported that they are found to be beneficial to the brain. “Specifically, concentration rank and emotional calm rank significantly improved from section EZ (early zentangle) to sections MZ (mid zentangle) and LZ (late zentangle). These findings align with previous research, which supports the efficacy of zentangle and mindfulness‐based art therapies in enhancing mental well‐being, reducing stress, and promoting self‐efficacy, particularly among healthcare professionals and elders.”
“This study represents a groundbreaking exploration into the impact of zentangle intervention on various aspects, including cognitive focus, emotional well‐being, stress levels, neural activity patterns, and functional connectivity across distinct brain regions and frequency bands,” PubMed Central said. “In summary, the results suggest that zentangles show great promise as a mindfulness meditation practice for improving concentration and emotional calmness while simultaneously reducing stress levels.”
Though many students and people do not take art therapy sessions, I believe that creating beauty using different mediums of art can be just as beneficial and relaxing. So, if under stress, people should look into different local art classes to participate in. In Louisa there are several locations where art classes are available, such as Avenue ArtHouse which provides numerous classes involving different medias.
“Every person is creative, and when we practice our creativity–in any form–we tap into a part of ourselves that is associated with peace, childhood, and contemplation,” Avenue ArtHouse co-owner Helen Weddle said. “Art is the ultimate form of self-care, but art is also an expression of thought, and it can be the most powerful expression of ideas we know. We are visual creatures; Art is the mind made visual.”
