Water Color Painting Therapy With Jo Ann Danchik

By Dorothy Hughes


Art is truly an expression of self and truth. Well, that is something that many artists attest to be true, one such form of expression that has gained popularity is the art form of watercolour painting therapy. Yes, according to Jo Ann Danchik, art as a form of expression can be used as a therapy tool for most children and adults. Art is a non-invasive way of posing questions and getting the answers, you need without the individually affected feeling vulnerable or manipulated.

This art form of therapy is especially used in children and adults who have encountered some kind of traumatic event or life-altering moment. Painting and drawing are used to help the individual to express suppressed emotions and feelings related to the event without necessarily having to verbalize the details. This is a fantastic way of creating a safe place for the person to share their trauma.

As technology seems to be dividing people socially the need for feeling heard and understood has risen dramatically. This has, in turn, led to the creation of a number of art forms to try and convey the message. According to the journal of psychology, it is human nature to want to tell stories, to want to share parts of ourselves with others and make connections through various channels whichever format those expressions may take.

Another art form that is used as a form of emotional therapy is music, music has the ability to transcend emotion and feelings, and sometimes may feel like a translator and decoder of one s own personal emotional struggles. Most artists tend to write their music from their own personal experiences. When these artists do this, they act as an anchor of emotional release, which again is a form of art therapy.

When the desire to share one s emotions through art bubbles up it results in those efforts needing to get out and be shared. This means that more and more artists are compelled to share their feelings and emotions through expression. This can result in one or two things those efforts being cheered on or dissed. However, the reward of using art techniques as emotional therapy is that more people than less are going to relate to those same emotions and as such the cycle of inspiration and emotional therapy just continues.

In a number of cases, displacement of emotions tends to occur. Where the individual will place blame on themselves. Using painting allows individuals to correctly asses the event without dissecting it. Although some argue that art doesn t fully get to the bottom of the issue, many therapists disagree.

Colors emit emotions, they stir up certain memories, thoughts, and feelings by the mere sight of looking at them. This is called association and using a colour in one s artwork helps you to emote. Paintings tend to be a security blanket of emotions where you can simply tell how the artist was feeling on the sole basis of the colours they chose to use.

Our emotions are bound to come out, no matter how hard we try to bottle them up and store them away. Using art is truly an inspiring way to let those feelings and emotions out in a way that can help others too.




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