How to Use Art Therapy for Personal Growth

As we go through life, many of us get stuck in our personal growth because we suppress feelings of anger or hurt to avoid confrontations and to get on with our lives. However, the energy from those suppressed feelings doesn’t just go away; it needs a release. Art therapy is an effective method for releasing our deeply held negative energy and transmuting it into something positive and beautiful. Here is an Art Therapy technique I’ve dubbed emotional painting.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Painting canvas – as large a canvas as you can get
• Acrylic art paints – color choices are yours
• Container for water
• Couple of rags
• Private space in which to paint
• Easel – optional
• Drop cloth – optional
• Painting clothes - optional

1. 
   Personal growth through Art Therapy

   ~ Set up your art space ~
   
   Because the intent of this art therapy is to release old negative energy, you need to be in a space that is comfortable and safe for you, as well as appropriate for painting; ie: good lighting, air ventilation, room to move. You may need to cover the floor/furniture with a drop cloth if necessary.

2. 
   Art Therapy feels good

   ~ Prepare your intent ~
   
   Take a few moments to clear your mind. State your intent in your mind and/or aloud. For instance, “I am going to release the hurt I’ve been carrying around ever since _______.” Address a specific area that you know you’ve been avoiding.
   
   If nothing comes to mind immediately, be still and gentle with yourself. Let what bubbles up come up in its own time. Force nothing.
   
   When you’re feeling something emerge, be in that moment. When you’re ready, begin your painting.

3. 
   Release negative energy through Art Therapy

   ~ Finger painting ~
   
   You’ll note that I did not include paint brushes in the list of things you’ll need. This is intentional because you’ll be painting with your hands.
   
   Remember the sensation of freedom when you finger painted as a child? Emotional painting art therapy is going to tap into that memory. Form is not important here, expressing your suppressed emotion is.

4. 
   Use Art Therapy as stepping stone towards Personal Growth

   ~ Begin painting! ~
   
   Be bold! There may be an initial hesitation to begin. Finger painting is messy, but dive in and do it anyway. This art therapy is about breaking down the walls that hold you back from your own personal growth.
   
   So, squirt a blob of paint into your hand – whip it at the canvas! Shout out the emotion as you do so!
   
   Feeling angry? Get your hands dirty and smear it, scratch at the paint. Let the emotion burst from you and onto the canvas.
   
   Notice the feelings in your body. You may want to cry; if so, do so. Just let what you’re feeling out; transfer it through your hands, into the paint and onto your canvas.

5. ~ Take time out ~
   
   When the emotion you’re feeling dissipates, step back and breathe. Look at your handiwork; how does it makes you feel?
   
   Avoid being technically critical of your work. Remember this is your raw emotion being expressed and art therapy is not necessarily for public consumption. It’s for you and your personal growth. It’s all beautiful.

6. ~ Stop when you’re no longer feeling it ~
   
   Force nothing. If you’ve exhausted the emotion for the time being, stop for the day. Pick up painting again the following day, or a day or two later.
   
   Contemplate your emotional painting; follow your instincts for what you feel needs to happen next in the painting. There is no right or wrong way to go about this particular art therapy. When you feel that your emotional painting is finished, it’s finished.
   
   You may find that the situation that originally caused you pain is not so emotionally charged as it was before; you’ve released the negative energy and you’ve taken another step forward in your personal growth.

Tips & Warnings

• An art background is not required for this art therapy technique. If you’re shy about using paints for the first time, stick to just two colors; something like white and cobalt blue.
• Wet your hands to thin and spread paint where you want it. Play with texture, blending and smearing of color. Have fun with this art therapy technique!
• There is a certain feeling of freedom when painting on a very large canvas; it allows for big movements and expression that cannot be expressed as well on a small canvas. Alternatively, you can clamp several smaller canvasses together to make one large one, and then hang them in a group for another artistic effect.
• If you used a gallery style canvas, you can color wash the edges for a finished look and leave the canvas unframed. Color washing is using a dab of paint on a wet rag and “washing” it over the canvas. The color will not be uniform.
• If you have any sensitivity to acrylic paints, then you might try using water colors and an extra large water color paper

Resources

• Art Therapy Association

[CCrock]

on 10/2/2009 This is a great article! I'm an artist as well and agree it can be a great way to work through emotions, thanks for the reminder and a simple way to get painting! With this technique, there's really no excuses why you can't do it!

[roseanne09]

on 9/20/2009 This is a great way to express feelings and personal growth. Thanks for sharing such a wonderful article. 5*

[airving]

on 8/7/2009 I did this when I was a kid, but I completely forgot about it. Thanks for sharing How to Use Art Therapy for Personal Growth . . . I'll have to start again :) 5*

[FrazzledNanny]

on 7/31/2009 What a beautiful way to experience personal growth. Art Therapy is great for reducing stress also! Thanks for sharing! 5*

[capfriend]

on 7/24/2009 Wonderful! As an artist myself, I couldn't agree with you more. 5*