The philosopher and practicing psychotherapist refutes a number of myths regarding art therapy. In particular, that it is an auxiliary and «non-serious» method.
Even psychotherapists themselves sometimes treat art therapy as schoolchildren treat drawing lessons: this is not serious. The work of the German philosopher and at the same time practicing psychotherapist Udo Baer completely refutes such an opinion. He describes deep personal problems of clients (secret fears, inhibition of feelings) and how they are resolved in the course of drawing, sculpting or making textile collages. The material plays an important role: “different qualities of objects offer customers different qualities of contact”. For example, a silk scarf invites rather light and swinging movements, although «it can turn into a rope that is pulled, tied and even beaten.» Equally important are the symbolic images that clients create themselves or at the request of the therapist. Here is what the author writes about the guardian angel: “I have never met a person who could not come up with anything in response to these words, to this symbol. It surprises me again and again … how exactly they know why he exists, how he can and should protect them. One of the characteristic features of Udo Baer’s approach is that he pays a lot of attention to working with the body, its image, with the oppositions «inside-outside», «tension-relaxation», «living-non-living».
KLASS, 552 p.