art therapy

The use of paintings, sculpture, and other creative expressions in the treatment of people with emotional problems. Art therapy is often used in social group work and in group psychotherapy. Often used with institutionalized people or inpatients, it is also considered to be effective with healthy people who wish to share art as a means of enhancing personal growth and development. In some forms of art therapy, clients create their own works and discuss the results with the therapist or with other members of an art therapy group. In other forms, the clients are exposed to works of art by a variety of artists and asked to assess how the works affect their own feelings and understandings. See also bibliotherapy.