Art and mental health

Art has plenty of beneficial effects on the human brain and both interpreting and creating art can be relaxing and enjoyable By Na’Syr Jackson | Pixabay

In 2016, an article titled “Reduction of Cortisol Levels and Participants’ Responses Following Art Making” in the Journal of the American Art Therapy Association presented evidence that making art lowered Cortisol levels in their participants, Cortisol being the primary stress hormone, therefore reducing stress.

Regarding the effectiveness of art as a stress reliever, senior Kirsten Sturgill said, “Art is an effective stress reliever for me. A lot of the time, I’m not able to express my emotions through words, which is especially frustrating when trying to talk to others about my problems. Art helps with that, because I’m able to share my frustration and stress in a way that requires no words. Even more, in art, you can be as messy and open as you want. There’s no fear, at least for me, when it comes to art. It’s a safe place for me to express myself without pressure from others. “

Another article in 2017 called “Functional near-infrared spectroscopy assessment of reward perception based on visual self-expression: Coloring, doodling, and free drawing” in the journal The Arts in Psychotherapy they found that making art resulted in a reward pathway being in the brain activated.

Art is also a useful medium through which one can express their emotions. Your emotions can be released, artistically, through your art when you are unable to express yourself but are looking for an emotional outlet.

First things first is to start the habit. When starting out, don’t worry about the quality of your artwork. As a beginner, it’s more important that you do something rather than worry about the result.

Senior Eva Dow said, “I like to look at artists that inspire me and see what I can implement from their techniques into my visions and from there I put on some music and just let the art happen.”

That doesn’t mean don’t try to fix something in your artwork that you don’t like if something stands out to you. It’s more of a warning to not focus on how your artwork turns out so much that you don’t enjoy the process. Sometimes artwork doesn’t always turn out how a person expects it to, which is okay.

Senior Annalise Pudimott said, “I mean, honestly, I just roll with it. If it’s not what I originally intended to do, I try to fix it the best I can. If it takes a new direction, That’s fine. I really don’t have any set plans when I do art anyways, so my art is always kind of unpredictable.”

Overall, art is an effective stress reliever, a useful tool for expression, easy to start, and doesn’t require experience.

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