practise of art therapy, amongst the colour-coded rooms and soft soothing music played throughout her practise.. A therapy that, while relatively new to the accepted therapeutic practises here in Saskatchewan, is one that has been evoked and practised unknowingly since time began. It is one that Wallace, herself a highly creative individual, practised unwittingly as the curator of an Art Gallery in the Gulf Islands many years ago, simply because it has always just been a natural process for her to communicate with people in creative ways.
CD
‘
Karen Wallace spends her days trying to reach out to clients through the age-old
C est Danine designs
“Be Alive Be Yourself Be Fashionable”
“I wrote a book on archetypes,” says Wallace. “And during the process of writing that book I realized that what I have always been doing is art therapy. I have always worked with people in one way or another. I have always taught workshops. I have always worked with children. I have always worked with the people that came through the gallery, and worked through their art process. For me, it was always something that was really just innate.” “Being a therapist is really about being interested in people’s lives, in psychology and in how people can move ahead in their lives,” continues Wallace. “So putting the two together was just a really natural avenue for me.” Described as “using the expressive arts to work psychologically and emotionally with people,” art therapy is similar to conventional therapy where individuals come in to talk about their problems, says Wallace, who obtained a Post Graduate Diploma in Art Therapy, from the B.C. School of Art Therapy in Victoria and a M.Ed. But, instead of just working cognitively, something that can be difficult for many of the clients she sees, art therapy gives them another way to communicate and express themselves. For clients who have experienced trauma, are autistic, or who have experienced a
Photos by Lisa Slugoski
Custom Designed
• Wedding Gowns • Formal Wear • Dresses • Fascinators • Jewellery
brain injury, typically some of the hardest clients to work with, art therapy can fill the void that traditional therapies cannot fill for those lacking in verbal skills. “When you have a brain injury, things are so complicated and it’s so hard to find healing. Art therapy is one way where I see clients moving ahead in this process.” “We might use art to help self-regulate, which means helping the body calm down and get to a more relaxed state or to make meaning,” explains Wallace. “So I have lots of different techniques and ways of using art, visual art, movement – which help people open up and see different possibilities. It’s not just working verbally. It’s not just using the head. It’s using the body, creative expression and the creative process to move forward.” Following one of two different routes depending on the needs of the client, Wallace says art can be used as the therapy in and of itself, allowing people simply the expression of creating. It can also be used in conjunction with other therapies as a whole process, where a client will come to talk about a specific process and then use art as a way to take the discussion to a new level to be explored further. “It’s a way for these clients to feel confident,” says Wallace. “In other areas of their
Photos by Lisa Slugoski
For appointments please call (306) 537-6186 www.cestdaninedesigns.com danine123@hotmail.com
FOR SASKATCHEWAN WOMEN | VOL. 2 ISSUE 1, JANUARY 2013 | 9