We are excited to invite you to submit a proposal to present at the American Art Therapy Association’s 53rd Annual Conference to be held in Minneapolis, MN, November 9 – 13, 2022! Proposals must be submitted online by April 3, 2022.

It feels so good to finally report this with confidence: New Jersey is licensing art therapists! While that alone is worth celebrating, for New Jersey art therapists, this is particularly amazing given the unexpected, winding journey that took many years.

CAAHEP has awarded initial accreditation to the Art Therapy master’s programs at Caldwell University in Caldwell, NJ; Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, CA; and the University of Louisville in Louisville, KY, effective January 20, 2022. 

The Accreditation Council for Art Therapy Education (ACATE) is currently seeking applications and nominations for two (2) Educator and one (1) Practitioner positions that will become open on July 1, 2022.

Please consider applying or nominating someone whom you believe will work to promote best practices for art therapy educational programs and help ACATE lead the upcoming revision process for the art therapy accreditation standards.

In February, we celebrate Black History Month by honoring the labors and contributions of Black art therapists towards their clients, the profession at large, and the world. Let us use this month of national recognition to center Black histories, voices, experiences, and ways of knowing as a catalyst for continued inspiration and visibility in art therapy year-round.

In support of these goals, we have compiled an art therapy specific resource guide, Black History in Art Therapy: A Living Reference & Resource Guide. In it, we share powerful stories documented in blog posts, newsletters, interviews, presentations, videos, and publications. We hope this guide will be a living resource for information on Black history in art therapy, and we plan to update it regularly (so please consider bookmarking it!

"At the time I was getting started in the ’70s, art therapy was in a very different place, as it was just emerging as a profession. I loved working in the field, but there was little opportunity for financial and professional growth. I felt stuck, like I did not have a ladder to climb. I switched to social work and enjoyed advancing in that career, but I still utilized art therapy when the situation called for it. Recent correspondence with staff at AATA, ATCB, and NYATA; interactions with art therapy colleagues; and attending Zoom presentations sparked my return to art therapy. The new ideas presented on medical and social topics have inspired new hands-on art therapy activities. As I begin this new chapter as an art therapist, I feel much more comfortable and confident with myself." 

Did you know that AATA’s Institute for Continuing Education in Art Therapy (ICE/AT) currently offers more than 420 courses, which we present virtually, live or on-demand? In case you missed them live, we want to reshare these popular trainings now available on demand:
⇒ Our first-ever training offered in Spanish, Arte, Vejez y Migración: una adaptación de la Terapia Cognitiva Conductual Focalizada en Trauma (TFCBT) para trabajo creativo con inmigrantes de la Tercera Edad, conducted by Nadia Paredes, MA, LMFT, ATR.
⇒ Exploring Art Therapy Assumptions through the Lens of Neuroscience, conducted by Christianne Strang, PhD, ATR-BC.

“If you are looking to start a regular practice for self-care, try to choose something that is sustainable for you, meaning that it is affordable and you have regular access to it."

Part of the study “is to see how art therapy can decrease people’s levels of depression and improve their overall quality of life,” Meera Rastogi said. So patients will use art-therapy through an app, and see how the electronic art exercises help. Some patients in the study will use only the art therapy app, while the others will have both the art therapy and the robotic dogs.

“Art-making is inherently therapeutic. [Art therapy] creates a space for people to have the benefits of just processing the meaning and content of whatever comes up in their artwork. It’s using art in order to better express yourself or discover certain patterns that you’re engaging in.”

“Every year, Victorians throw away 134,000 tonnes of garbage. A large portion of these materials could be diverted for creative reuse,” said Ashley Howe, ­executive director of SUPPLY Victoria.

University Hospital turned pandemic protocol (COVID-19 testing stickers) into works of art.

The therapists take no issue with the main aim of the legislation, which is to prevent patients from being blindsided by bills…. Instead, they are concerned about another part of the law — a price transparency provision…. That's unfitting for mental health care, therapists say, because diagnoses can take time and sometimes change over the course of treatment.

The Beck Center for the Arts is displaying Cleveland artist Julie Schabel’s new exhibit “Printer Wonderland” in its Music/Creative Arts Therapies Building.... Focusing on photo-based printmaking, Schabel makes repetitious patterns based on natural imagery. The canvases transform into optical illusions as she adds layers and colors to the composition.

There are also hints that the brain changes in response to other art therapies, like dance, poetry, painting, sculpture, even leatherwork. But so far, there hasn't been much scientific study to back that up.