So…I’m back from the AATA conference in Cleveland, and I was thoroughly impressed with the excellent key note speaker we had, Dr. Bruce Perry. He was so inspiring and very much in tune with what us art therapists are up to- to the point that he’s even developed his own way of charting and evaluating for the developmental level of an individual (something that Art Therapists can do through assessing the artwork of a client). I also picked up his book The Boy Who was Raised as a Dog. I’m only about 50 pages into it, but I can tell that its a great read for those of us who work with (or are interested in working with) traumatized individuals. It also very much parallels his key note address, so if you missed the conference, you can get the gist of what was discussed.
I also took some fabulous workshops that were full of excellent ideas and theory. One of my favorites was the day long workshop I took with Lucille Proulx, who worked for many years at the Montreal Children’s Hospital and was the president of the Quebec Association of Art Therapists. She specializes in attachment issues between parents and children, and helps to facilitate normal attachment through art therapy group work with moms, dads and their kids. I haven’t checked out the book yet, but its supposed to incorporate the theory and directives she discussed throughout her workshop. It should be an excellent resource. Although I don’t work with families, many of the directives that she’s created have the potential to work well the with the population I do work with- Adults who are developmentally disabled and who have an Axis I diagnosis as well.
I also very much enjoyed the seminar on Contemporary Issues in Art Therapy, Psychoanalysis and Children. Some of who I would consider masters of the profession (i.e., Judith Rubin) participated in a case presentation that had the air of supervision. They said that this is a regular seminar that they’ve been hosting for the past 5 years, and hopefully they’ll do it again in Dallas.
On her spare time during the AATA conference, Amanda Alders briefly interviewed art therapists and posted them on YouTube. This is intended as another resource on the internet, and bring the art therapy world, and those who are interested in art therapy, closer together.
You can check out interviews with the Creative Therapy Sessions podcaster Melissa Solorzano, and also, yours truly.
I checked out some of the music applications that have been developed so far, which were pretty cool. The music program featured an interactive piano, where you could touch the screen and push down on the keys to create sound. There was a DJ program, as well, allowing scratching and mixing. What was missing, of course was haptic feedback- actually having the sensation of touching the keys or record and pushing them down or from side to side.
A paint program was also demonstrated. They had something that looked like an artist’s palette, that when dropped down on the surface the circles that were cut out (representing where the paint would go) turned different colors- for example, one red, one pink, one blue and one yellow. They also had regular paint brushes, which were “dipped” into the virtual paint inside the palette, and then you could apply color anywhere on the screen. It made me so excited! There’s lots more to be done to make this a useful tool for art making- for example, being able to mix colors together, and having gradients of color (similar to Art Rage). However, a product like this makes the idea of Cyber-Art Therapy come alive in my mind.
Here’s a demo video I found that demonstrates some of what I described above.
For those of you who are interested in CyberTherapy:
The Interactive Media Institute, APA approved for offering continuing education for psychologists, is currently organizing the 14th annual CyberTherapy and CyberPsychology Conference in 2009. They are currently taking submissions for posters, oral presentions and symposiums. The conference will take place on June 21-23, 2009, at VILLA CARAMORA, an historical dwelling located on the Lago Maggiore, Verbania-Intra, Italy.
Here’s an excerpt from their Themes and Topics page:
The 14th Annual CyberTherapy and CyberPsychology Conference
brings together researchers, clinicians, funders and policy makers to share and discuss the growing disciplines of CyberTherapy and CyberPsychology.
The conference will seek input from a wider segment of the scientific community, and is interested in attracting experts in clinical therapy and rehabilitation, cognitive sciences, social sciences, and computer sciences interested in the meeting’s core topics: emerging applications of new media, design of new media and effects of new media.
Conference attendees have the opportunity to play a role in designing the future of cyberpsychology and health care.
This sounds like it could be an amazing opportunity to learn, or perhaps even present. If you check this page out further, you’ll notice the wide range of topics they are interested in addressing during this conference. I’d love to go….and its in Italy!
This year’s American Art Therapy Association conference (coming up next week!) places a heavy emphasis on neurological understanding. Each year there is so much new research, information and discoveries, making it hard to keep up with current understanding on this topic. If you’d like to brush up on your understanding of neurological development, mechanisms, anatomy, as well as the impact of new research on philosophical questions, check out this podcast by Ginger Campbell MD.
The podcast is impressively clear- especially if you start from the beginning and continue in consecutive order, since explanations are always provided in the current or previous episodes, preparing the listener for more advanced topics. It does help to have some basic knowledge of the brain before you begin, although I’m sure if you’re willing to look certain things up (ie: a picture of a neuron and its parts) it will make the information easier to understand.
Here are some topics I enjoyed listening to so far (I haven’t gotten through them all): #4- The Great Brain Debate- Nature vs. Nurture, #11- Emotions, #12 Memory, and #13 Unconscious Decisions.
Here’s another workshop offered by Creative Pier in NYC.
Wednesday November 19th
6:30 PM- 9:00PM
with Routa Segal
Creative Pier-833 Broadway, 3rd Floor New York,NY
Express your thanks for all the good things in life and create a hand-made gift that comes from your heart. Celebrate every person and every thing that brings abundance and joy. Draw, write, paint or collage and create an artwork that expresses your gratitude–a thank you card, a jewelry box, a bracelet, a picture frame or any other item that you would like to create for yourself or someone else.
Space is limited to 16 people, please rsvp by November 18th. $25, all art materials are included. rsvp@creativepier.com
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