What is Arts Therapy?

Arts therapy is a way of using creativity—like painting, drawing, collage, or other artmaking—to explore feelings, reduce stress, and support wellbeing.

You don’t need to be “good at art.” It’s not about making something perfect. Instead, it’s about using creativity as another language to express what’s inside and to make sense of experiences.

How Arts Therapy Helps

• Express feelings when words are hard to find.

• Reduce stress and anxiety through creative processes.

• Build self-understanding and confidence.

• Feel seen, heard and valued in a safe, supportive space.

• Encourage calm, focus and relaxation.

Evidence & Theory

Arts therapy is supported by research across psychology, neuroscience, and health sciences. Studies show that engaging in creative expression can lower stress hormones, improve emotional regulation, and strengthen wellbeing.

From a complex systems theory perspective:

• Human beings are complex, interconnected systems—emotions, thoughts, body, and environment all influence each other.

• When experiences remain unspoken or “formless,” they can disrupt the system and show up as distress, tension, or symptoms.

• Arts therapy gives form to what is formless—feelings, memories, or sensations are expressed visually, making them visible and workable.

• By bringing these inner experiences into form, the system shifts. New patterns of meaning, regulation, and resilience can emerge.

This process helps clients move from overwhelm and fragmentation toward clarity, integration, and healing.

Who Can Benefit?

Arts therapy can support:

• Children, young people and adults.

• People living with stress, grief, or trauma.

• Those who feel “stuck” or overwhelmed.

• People living with disability, mental health challenges, or neurodivergence.

• Anyone curious about exploring creativity for wellbeing..

Do I Need Art Skills?

No. The focus is on the process, not the product. What matters is the meaning and insight that come through the artmaking.

What to Expect

In arts therapy you’ll be welcomed into a safe and respectful space. A registered art therapist will guide you through simple creative activities. Together, you explore the thoughts, feelings, or insights that come up—at your pace, in your way.

Arts therapy is about more than making art. It’s about making meaning, finding connection, and discovering that you are enough—just as you are.