تنظیم بازآفرینی: هنر درمانی در موزه

Museums, their settings and the objects they care for can be effective allies in art therapy treatment. With the use of two case examples that explore life stages, this article proposes four metaphorical roles that museums can play to facilitate treatment goals. These roles are: museum as co-leader, museum as group, museum as self, and museum as environment. Examples of their practical implementation in treatment are presented.

Museums are institutions that safely keep artifacts “for the study and understanding of mankind” (De Montebello, 2005, para. 4). They provide for an integrated artistic experience by encompassing various levels of artistic process such as exhibiting, viewing, and making art itself. Art therapists’ competence in all of these artistic levels is important for art therapy to expand into new domains where the potential of art within the mental health profession is not fully understood. This is especially the case in countries where the profession is still in its infancy, or in mental health and social service communities which view art only as a recreational undertaking. By including museums and other cultural establishments, the role of art in art therapy can be reinforced. The value of this approach includes easing resistance to therapy in communities where it is associated with shame around illness or where it is perceived as a luxury. Thompson (2009) describes art therapy as “a contemporary art practice that strives to restore the primacy of art and to achieve a balance between artistic practice and psychotherapy” (p. 159). The inclusion of artistic institutions honors the origins and evolution of our field. Museum environments and artifacts offer untapped therapeutic benefits for clients and communities. In The Therapeutic Potentials of a Museum Visit, Salom (2008) explored various museum elements useful for therapy. These include: artistic diversity (which mirrors the nature of individuality, fosters a tolerance for differences, and provides imagery for interventions), architectural boundaries (where scale, lighting, temperature, circulation, display, etc. (para. 4) can be used metaphorically), and the collective nature of images (which make Yalom (1995) group therapy principals of “universality,” “installation of hope,” and “imparting information” readily available ( Salom, 2008, para. 9)). As presented below, these as well as other elements - such as the interpersonal relations that museums offer and the change in personal routine - provide museums with numerous resources to carry out important roles in treatment.

The setting carries an important role in goal attainment in art therapy. Bitgood (2002) describes museums as “informal learning institutions” that provide brief exposure to a wide range of competing stimuli, in which visitors choose where to place their attention, make important social contacts, and delight in learning. Many elements of treatment remain unchanged within museums. Nevertheless, every museum holds a particular character composed of persons, space, permanent collections, and varying exhibits, which can serve important roles in art therapy. Thinking of each museum as a co-leader or group with a singular personality or as a representation of self or environment can help define its purpose in these roles. Alliances between art therapy and museums are still at their dawn. Museum educators and directors have paved the way for personal expression and transformation through interpretive art exhibitions (Treadon, Rosal, & Wylder, 2006). Museums are interested in incrementing their outreach, in some cases by incorporating clinical and educational knowledge (Linesch, 2004). Environmental psychology can additionally contribute to insights about place identity, the influence of settings on behavior, and place attachment, among other factors that can serve art therapists in creating spatial metaphors. Reinventing the setting requires a constant review of art therapy principles, as the art therapist is the exclusive advocate for establishing the identity of the profession within conventional and non-conventional settings. Simultaneously, by cooperating with art institutions, the identity of the profession can be strengthened. Further experience and study is needed to discover the scope of what these settings can offer the profession and how they can “provide alternative opportunities to serve our clients” (Treadon et al., 2006, p. 301). Ulman (1998) describes the differences between an art class and an art therapy session as invisible to an untrained eye, but felt and known by therapists and patients. This awareness will be pertinent in the process of bringing museum experiences beyond the realm of educational visits and into the domain of art therapy.