Art therapy and the patient experiencing psychosis who identifies as an artist : an exploratory study

This thesis explores art therapy with patients experiencing psychosis who also identify as ‘artists’, and arose from encounters in a psychiatric setting. It is argued that these patients struggle with art therapy in a way that is different from other non-artist patients and they may appear to have difficulties relating to the emergence of emotional aspects in their own or others’ artwork. This poses a potential problem for the art therapist who hopes to evoke insight for the patient, based on their artwork as self-expression. This dilemma and the countertransference phenomena specific to this problem are, with one exception, unacknowledged in art therapy literature. This thesis reviews art therapy literature to explore possible defence mechanisms as used by patients experiencing psychosis who identify as artists in art therapy. Four case studies of artist patients who undertook art therapy with the author are then presented. The psychological issues contributing to the artists’ experience and the issues facing the art therapist are investigated. This is complemented by comments made by other art therapists from a questionnaire based on this area of enquiry. Finally the thesis addresses the topic with reference to art therapy practice providing strategies to work with patients experiencing psychosis who also identify as artists. The case studies revealed that patients were more receptive to using art to express emotions when art therapy was experienced as containing and the research found that art therapy was generally supportive for artists when their defences were viewed as appropriate coping strategies