Art Teacher Vs. Art Therapists

Many art therapists have relayed that we, as students and going into the field, have to make it clear we're not arts and craft teachers. I also resent being called this, on the few occassions it's happened, but I can understand how people might see art therapists like that. We are, after all doing art. I have had to take art classes and I do know how to do use (and teach) some techniques. The difference is that an art teacher teaches techniques and has a direction to get a student there. They try to get a student to be an artist or at least understand how the technique will help them in their realism. There might even be critiques with other students where people look at a student's work and offer suggestions on how to make it better or what they like about it. An art therapist may help a client with a technique if the person asks.

Most of the time, the art therapist wants a client to express themselves, not labor over the technique or materials. There are often not critiques in a group art therapy session. Mostly, an art therapist attempts to get a person to say something about their work and what it might say to others about them, if that's the art therapist's theory. Sometimes it's just that the person is able to express themselves (and often want to talk about it). There is an importance on titles and dates of pieces. A title to give an indication what the subject is or what the person thought. And a date so that there can either be a review or the client can go back to that artwork and remember what they were going through and if it's reflected in the art. This also marks progress, which is a benefit of doing art therapy compared to talk therapy. In the groups that I run that involve art therapy, I ask clients about what they liked about their work or the activitiy and what they might change about the work or activity or how they generally feel that day or at that time. I'd venture to guess that whether a student liked the activity or materials is inconsequential to an art class. I see this as a major difference between an art class and art therapy-- the art therapist cares about what the person liked and didn't like and how they are feeling.

I hope that more people in general are able to either participate or observe groups that art therapists run because it might give some clarity about the difference between art classes and art therapy.