272 • Introduction to Art Therapy
just art therapists, but also clinicians in other fields and the general public (Malchiodi, 2002,
2007). The same is true for McNiff (1994, 1995, 1998b, 2003, 2004).
As noted in Chapter 2, art therapists do not own art, any more than we own therapy. It
is my hope that we will be able to expand the reach of our modality by reaching out to both
professionals and interested laypeople. The experience and skill of a trained art therapist in
the use of materials with others is not literally transferable. But a little help can sometimes
go a long way.
I was reminded of this recently, while consulting to a group of advanced residents in
child psychiatry. These eager young physicians already had some minimal drawing supplies
in their offices, and were curious about the pictures the children had done. Because they
did not know how to “read” what had been communicated, they did not realize how very
much their patients were actually telling them through their art (Figure 12.6). And because
they also did not know how to talk with the youngsters about their drawings, they had been
unable to find out more about the messages being conveyed.
With just a little support, they were able to improve the quality of the art materials they
made available to the children, greatly increasing their appeal and usage. And as these young
child psychiatrists began to appreciate the richness of what was being expressed and worked
through in the drawings, they began to see them as equivalent in value to the verbalizations
they once viewed as the only “real” therapy. As they learned how to talk with the youngsters
about their pictures, they were able to extend and expand their symbolic meaning, as well
as their therapeutic effectiveness.
This was demonstrated so vividly in the art they brought in each week, that this group of
residents was easily “sold” on the value of art in child therapy. I suspect they will be more
likely to hire and to consult with art therapists in their future work. They are also more
likely to value art as an outlet for their own children, and maybe even for themselves. They
are some of the people I addressed in Artful Therapy (Rubin, 2005a).
Since art therapists are often involved in doing presentations and training for those in
other fields, I am including two handouts that I have found helpful over the years (DVD
Figure 12.6 Describing drawing to a child psychiatrist.