Words can sometimes seem inadequate to express the depth and complexity of feeling that clients can bring to therapy. This full day workshop is aimed at both qualified and student Counsellors and Psychotherapists wanting to learn more about the riches that working with the arts and the imagination can bring to the therapeutic relationship. No artistic experience is necessary as the emphasis is on process and expression rather than on the finished product. The approach is non interpretative, and humanistic views of personal growth and the fulfilment of human potential are central.

The workshop will be in large part experiential and should be fun and inspiring as well as informative. It will include exploring our own relationship with creativity, including what might block its full expression. Participants will be invited to use the different art forms available for their own self exploration and self expression in a supportive and non judgemental environment.

In the second part of the day, creative examples from case work will be presented to illustrate the many uses of the arts and the imagination in a variety of clinical contexts. The use of different art forms will be illustrated including painting and drawing, clay, puppets, sand tray and the use of the imagination and metaphor. None of these resources is essential to start working more creatively. References will be made to key theoretical influences including Gestalt, TA, and neurobiological research and CBT.

There will be an opportunity for discussion and to ask questions about individual client work. A handout will be provided containing references and suggestions for further reading.

Catherine Rees

Catherine is a UKCP accredited Psychotherapist with an MA in Integrative Arts Psychotherapy and a Certificate in the Therapeutic and Educational Application of the Arts from the Institute for Arts in Therapy and Education (IATE). www.artspsychotherapy.co.uk She is experienced in working with groups and individuals in both the NHS and private practice and has worked for Age Concern and the Martlets hospice in Hove as a Psychotherapist and Counsellor. She is passionate about the creative process and its link with the psychological process, and facilitates groups designed to help people unblock, expand or discover their creativity.

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