Art + Therapy = ?
Bernice Yu discusses the intricate relationship between
art and therapy and what this means to her.
2.
.
1.
Art is not a thing, it is a way.” Elbert Hubbard once said. This is what first inspired
me to think about what art is. To me, art is a way of expressing ourselves; it can be
a way to clean our soul; it can be a way for us to escape from real life. I consider
this as having a therapeutic impact on healing our soul through art.
3.
.
“
1. I always thought of myself as a happy person with a simple mind. However, I
found that at times my emotions could be very up and down. I
always draw elements such as water or the sea, particularly patterns connected to
waves. So why do I like drawing in this style? I think my emotions can be
compared to the sea which is unstable and always changing with the weather. So
while the sea can be seen as quite turbulent, it can also be tranquil at times.
2. I like to hide my feelings, especially when it comes to sadness and
trauma. Therefore, I like to draw happy things. For example, I like
drawing sunflowers to express my sadness. Even though it has a messy pattern,
there is some consistency involved. I think I was seeking happiness and hoping to
hide all my troubles when things got painful. In some ways I wish I could be
a sunflower - always facing the sun and never seeing the shadows.
3. I like drawing fish to represent myself because I see this as a way to hide
tears. This is the idea that when you cry, your tears mix together with the sea
water therefore nobody can tell that you are experiencing sadness.
4. I always like to seek hope and faith in my life and this is expressed through
different colours. Why? Although I always choose warm hues (such as red, pink,
purple), it does not necessarily mean that I am always happy. I think the colours
chosen in my drawings means that I can be optimistic and always have a smile on
my face.
ISSUE 05: APRIL 2016
4.
To sum
. up, Art Therapy
The answer is getting
+
=
?
to know yourself
through creating art.
As the saying goes, “ Art is
literacy of the heart.” No matter
how bad your troubles are,
there is always a way to
release this. Making art can
also allow dreams to come
true as you can create
what you want. Maybe this is
the magic of art therapy.
Bernice Yu is
studying Visual
Arts at HKIEd.
She enjoys
drawing and
reading in her
spare time.
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