Drawing the Line
Chapter One
In My Defense
In art therapy one accepts as basic to treatment the psychoanalytic mechanisms
of repression, projection, identification, and sublimation (Naumburg,
1953). These mechanisms, used unconsciously, are incorporated to
defend against feelings of anxiety that have become uncomfortable, humiliating,
or shameful. Removed from the ego, experiences may be isolated,
but they are never forgotten. They creep into our relationships and have
the power to both protect and stifle. This repression, however, "will make
itself felt sooner or later in some manner if it is at all vital to ... development"
(Whitmont, 1969, p. 107).
It is to this end that the art experience offers its invaluable service. The
ability to vent emotions through the process of art allows for both distance
and perspective. As Judy Rubin (1984) points out, "in the doing part of art
therapy, patients do not talk about feelings or relationships from a distance,
but they get into them and feel them" (p. 140). Thus, art therapy allows the
therapist and the client to embrace these defensive measures by making
them part of the treatment plan.
An example is the utilization of directives that target specif ... read full excerpt from Drawing the Line: Art Therapy with the Difficult Client ebook
