Ep 02. Therapeutic Art, with Kit Ripley

Kim: [00:00:00] So I wanted to tell a little bit of background about how I know Kit.

Kim: [00:00:08] When we were living in Chiang Mai, Thailand, I saw a little announcement in a community newsletter about a singer-songwriter who was coming through town. And it was someone that we (my husband and I) knew and loved. And I was amazed to see this name of someone that I considered an unknown from my country, after I had moved halfway across on the other side of the globe. And he was doing a benefit concert for Kit’s organization. And so I started corresponding with her and that was the first time I came across her name. And it was sometime later that I was able to attend some of the art retreats that Kit had organized. And that was a fabulous experience that gave me a taste of Kit’s expertise and her ability to teach new techniques and set the stage for a process, and then help us see what was unfolding during that process. So I would like to let people in the rest of the world also get a little taste of what Kit has to offer. And so I have asked her to come and speak with us today.

Kim: [00:01:29] So, Kit, could you start by telling us a little bit about what you do?

Kit: [00:01:36] Sure. I am originally from the U.S. and I was sent to Thailand with an organization called International Ministries to work as a global servant. And my placement is with a nongovernmental organization that serves adolescent hill tribe girls who are survivors of trauma. And the main focus of my work now is in therapeutic art and spiritual formation.

Kim: [00:02:03] And how did you get into that line of work?

Kit: [00:02:07] Well, I had the opportunity when I first came to the organization where I serve to learn more about the girls that we work with. And I discovered that many of our adolescent girls had never been to school before. And they were starting kindergarten for the first time in their lives. So I started doing visual arts classes with them to help support their cognitive development and visual perceptual skills and problem solving, and I discovered that art was also therapeutic for their emotional, social and spiritual needs.

[00:02:51] So would you call it art therapy?

Kit: [00:02:55] Well, actually, I’m not a licensed art therapist. Art therapy is a very unique specialty within the field of psychology. And in fact, I’m currently working on my masters of clinical mental health counseling with a focus in art therapy. So I hope one day to be licensed in the field. But at this point, what I do bring to the table is 17 years of experience teaching art classes for survivors of trauma like sexual abuse, domestic violence and human trafficking. And I really learned a lot from my students.

Kim: [00:03:35] Yeah. And do you work only with the students from your organization? Well, I know that you also work with others because I was part of that. But can you tell us a little bit more about what else you do?

Kit: [00:03:51] Sure. Yeah. After I started doing therapeutic art classes with the adolescent girls I work with, I started to receive invitations from other organizations to do workshops. So I started doing workshops for seminary students, art education students, NGO workers, single teen moms, lots of different kinds of people. And then a few years later, I was approached by some cross-cultural workers, expatriates who are living here in Thailand, who said, you know, “I want art classes, too.” So a friend and I designed art and prayer retreats as a way to respond to that need and use that as a way to sort of contemplate on spiritual ideas, to release stress and to practice being attentive to God’s presence. So over the last nine years, I’ve led about 35 retreats. And between the different therapeutic art classes, workshops and retreats, I’ve worked with about 600 participants thus far.

Kim: [00:05:00] That is amazing. Wow. So you said you are getting licensed. You’re in the process of the art therapy licensing and study. Can you tell us a little bit about. So when I hear the word therapy, I think of the psychology field and therapist. So how does art play into that? Would most art therapists actually be artists or is that just a little piece, is it just a little flair in the therapy?

Kit: [00:05:41] Well, when I applied for my master’s program in art therapy, I had to turn in a portfolio of my artwork and the level of my artistic competency was a factor in the admissions process. So really, everyone who is trained in the field of art therapy would have a competency in both psychology and an artistic field. So every expressive arts therapist would have a competency in at least one art modality. So that could be visual art, dance, movement, drama, or like a multi-modal approach to therapy. So really, we need to have both pieces in place and be able to respond to the client’s needs.

Kim: [00:06:29] Ok. So an art therapist would typically have even a further specialization in a certain field of art. Is that what you’re saying? OK. OK.

Kit: [00:06:41] And my specialty is visual art. Visual art.

[00:06:45] OK.

Kim: [00:06:47] You were talking about using art to help support cognitive development and problem solving skills and fine motor skills, a wide variety of skill sets. Can you give any examples of how that might play out

Kit: [00:08:48] So we can use therapeutic art for lots of different needs. So, for example, we can support executive function by doing art therapy activities that involve sequencing and storytelling, like drawing cartoons or prioritization. And so we would design activities that are specifically related to those needs.

Kim: [00:09:25] Do you think that art is helpful for people who are facing everyday stresses, or do you feel like it is really just therapeutic for more extreme types of stress that we would call trauma?

Kit: [00:09:42] I think that artistic expression is great for everyone. The process of creating art or music or dance can contribute to a sense of health and well-being. For anyone who is open to giving it a try. I think everyone deals with change and stress in their lives. And in my particular context, I find that most of the people that I work with are missionaries and development workers, and many of them have been exposed to secondary trauma through their work with people in poverty or like work in a hospital or providing relief for a natural disaster. And that’s in addition to facing the unique challenges of living in a cross-cultural context, like simply just negotiating issues of cross cultural difference, language changes, food adjustment, safety concerns, fundraising, how to educate their children in this new place. And in my experience, I think that most people underestimate how stressful their lives really are because we tend to assume that our own experience is normal. And so I think it can be really hard for people to to recognize their own stress. And so using the creative arts can be a great release for people in all different kinds of situations.

Kim: [00:11:19] Do you find any particular types of resistance when working with people, whether it’s adolescents or adults, that there are certain types of resistance come up over and over?

Kit: [00:11:34] I think to some degree, people who attend workshops or retreats that I read have already demonstrated some degree of openness to the idea because they showed up. Right?

[00:11:47] Yeah.

Kit: [00:11:47] So that kind of helps a little bit. But I think the greatest obstacle to people’s creativity is their own self-imposed fears. That they can’t do art or it’s going to turn out really horrible. And so they’re afraid to try anything.

Kit: [00:12:06] Sometimes people just don’t know where to start because they haven’t done it before. So I’ve had people come to an art retreat and they just kind of like. Sit there and look at the paper for a little while and kind of let it sink in and I give them a little time to sit with that for a little while, and then eventually I go over and talk to them. And some people just, they just don’t know where to start. Like, you know, a blank piece of paper can feel really intimidating. And I think it’s helpful if you haven’t been exposed to art before, to have someone who is a facilitator and can walk you through different techniques and provide some guidance.

Kit: [00:12:52] I also think it’s really great if you can do art in a group with other people. I tend to try to do group projects because I think we get inspired by watching one another’s work and seeing someone else do something and just realize, “Gosh, you know, that didn’t really look at hard when she was pushing the pace through the stencil.” Like, “Maybe I could try that!” you know.

Kim: [00:13:18] Yeah, no, I definitely experienced that getting inspired by other people and seeing people do techniques that I had never tried before. And then exactly like you say, “It didn’t look that hard. I think I could. It’s worth a try.” Yeah.

Kit: [00:13:34] Right.

Kim: [00:13:37] Yeah, and I definitely relate to that fear. And for me, I can trace it back to a specific instance in elementary school, when we were given a task, an art class, and it was this, it was an outline of a cat that was divided into different grids and each piece of the grid we were close to color in a different way. Different colors, different patterns to make this calico cat. And so I finished mine relatively quickly and the teacher gave it back to me and said I didn’t do it right. And that just shut me down, I’d say, for about 30 years that shut me down. So, yeah.

Kit: [00:14:22] It’s incredible how much power those kinds of experiences can have to speak into our lives, and we end up believing these lies that we tell ourselves, like, “I’m not really an artist. I can’t create anything. It will turn out horrible,” you know? And it takes a really long time to overcome that.

Kim: [00:14:47] Yeah, repeated exposure, repeated trying. And I think that’s kind of some of what you were talking about as well, with letting people try new things again and again. So along with that fear of just getting started, there’s that fear or pressure or expectation around the product, the end product. Because, you know, to get started means I’m working towards an end product. How do you help people with that? How do you view the end product versus the process of getting there? And do you feel like one is more important than the other?

Kit: [00:15:34] You know, that’s a question that people in this field have debated quite a lot. There tends to be a prevailing belief in the field of art therapy that the most important thing is the process. And what happens internally within people while they’re creating something. And so the artistic product doesn’t matter. It doesn’t have to be good art. Like, who really cares? And if a therapist focuses in on the artwork itself, some people believe that they’re imposing judgment on that person.

Kit: [00:16:18] And I agree that the process is very important and that art provides a great opportunity for exploring inner thoughts and emotions. And it is important to refrain from judging a person’s artwork.

Kit: [00:16:36] But here’s where I diverge a little bit from what some people believe in the field of art therapy. I really think that the artwork itself matters just as much as the process. I think that to say that the art product doesn’t matter is to say, “I don’t take you seriously because you’re not a real artist.” And I think that when we’re working with students and clients, we should be paying attention to the entire process and the product. So we want to pay attention to how people prepare to create. And how they actually make something and what’s occurring internally in them while they’re creating. And then also the product itself. And I think it’s perfectly acceptable to influence the process of creating something by providing guidance about art principles like color theory and design and technique or the properties of the medium. So, for example, if I’m watching someone who’s trying to get a really opaque color with their watercolors and not being successful, I might talk to them about the properties of water color as a transparent medium and suggest that if they want something opaque, they might want to try and acrylic and see how that works for them.

Kit: [00:18:09] I think that providing guidance helps people become better artists, which increases their level of competency and their level of satisfaction with the process. So what we’re doing here is stimulating multiple parts of the brain simultaneously. So people are using areas that deal with cognition and emotion and intuition and social competency, sensory input, motor skills, language, even this this thing called somatic interoception, which basically means your awareness of the internal state of your body, like your heart rate breathing and muscle tension. And so when you are addressing multiple parts of the brain simultaneously, you’re helping to integrate brain function and body function. And so I think that helping people to learn the skills that will help them to become more effective artists is is a part of that process. And it’s important. So basically, in the end, I would say that the product is equally important as the process.

Kim: [00:19:31] Now, you made a statement in there that like, if we don’t value the products, that that’s kind of like telling someone I don’t take you seriously because you’re not a real artist. And so it’s almost like that that idea of concentrating on the process and not valuing the end product is reinforcing some of the fears and insecurities that people might have about not being able to produce anything worthwhile through their process.

Kit: [00:20:02] Absolutely. I totally agree. And I think it’s important for something for people to be able to produce something that represents their intention and what they wanted to communicate and convey.

Kim: [00:20:16] Ok, so you’re you’re describing then a process where you you actually start with an end in mind or maybe not an end in mind, but an intention. So can you say more about that?

Kit: [00:20:30] Yeah, I think generally people have a concept, a feeling or an intention that they want to convey when they create something. And then as they create that concept might unfold and change and they learn more about it through the process of creating. So we might look around and select a medium we want to work with and then we might think about the degree of control that we’re looking for when we select a particular medium. So, for example, if your life feels really out of control, you might feel better with pencils and markers because they are very controlled media.

Kim: [00:21:17] That’s really interesting.

Kit: [00:21:18] But if you go with, like acrylic or watercolor paint, they’re harder to control. And so once you put the paint down on paper or canvas, now you have like a dialogue going on.

Kit: [00:21:37] You put the paint down and then you have to see what it’s going to do. And it might do something really unexpected. And now you have to respond to that. And then we might discover as we’re looking around the art room like, oh, there’s just the right picture that I need in the collage box. And so then we might take that picture back and think about what is it about that picture that resonates with us and how we can learn from it.

Kit: [00:22:04] So I always want to help people learn how to work with the medium that they’ve selected instead of competing with it or trying to force it to do something. Every medium has its particular strengths and limitations. And so one of the things that we do as artists is to develop a curiosity, to test things out, like see what this medium will do. See what it won’t do, to kind of play with it or converse with it or dance with that medium and see what it does and where it’s going to go. So it’s sort of like any kind of relationship, if you argue with it, it’s not going to be cooperative.

[00:22:50] Yeah.

Kim: [00:22:52] Yeah, I can really relate to that idea of of competing with the mediums. I had this idea in mind and I want to use this medium. But but it’s it’s really hard. It’s really not doing what I thought. It’s not going where I want it. And then I get into this like, tense kind of state. And what you’re describing is kind of the opposite. I like that.

Kit: [00:23:19] Yeah. It’s it’s learning to work with the medium. But I think what you’re describing is common for everyone. We often get to a place in our artwork where we look at it and we just think, “I hate it. It’s not doing what I wanted it to do. It’s not going there.” And. And and so that’s part of the learning process as artists is how to push through that and keep going with the piece until it goes in a direction that we’re satisfied with. And it may not end up where we originally thought it would. Or what our original intention was. But the important thing is that we learned something from it. And we in the end find something that we can feel satisfied about.

Kim: [00:24:15] Would you say that’s a parallel then? You have a piece of art, you started with an intention and through the process of working with it, it ended up in a different place. And then we have to come to terms with the fact that it ended up in a different place. So that’s kind of a parallel to the internal work of what’s going on in my mind and my emotions and my spirit and being willing to dig into something deep enough to find out that it’s not what I thought it was. And it has aspects and angles that maybe I’m not altogether comfortable with. But I’m going to engage with it.

Kit: [00:25:03] So there may be something for you to learn from that experience. One of the activities that I’ve done with my students at the NGO where I serve is I have them start to do artwork in pairs and we create this artwork by dialoguing with one another visually by their drawings so they’re not allowed to talk.

[00:25:31] Ok.

Kit: [00:25:32] And so it’s a way of sort of communicating with each other. And then halfway through the process, totally unannounced, I go around and I make some horrible mark right in the middle of their artwork.

Kim: [00:25:47] That’s so cruel.

Kit: [00:25:52] And that’s. And then I see. What are they going to do with that?

Kim: [00:25:58] And they still can’t talk about it?

Kit: [00:26:00] They still can’t talk. How are they going to respond? And so some of them sort of think about it and think, OK, I guess there’s going to be a duck in the middle of my lake. You know, because there’s a mark there. And so they learn to adjust and adapt to the situation. And then as I go around the room, I watch as other students are recognizing what I’m going to do because they just saw me do it to someone else. And by the time I get around the room, my hope is that – and it usually happens – My hope is that the students will will work together and bond together to prevent me from getting to their artwork.

Kim: [00:26:49] Oh!

Kit: [00:26:49] So they learned something from watching me do something abusive to someone else.

Kim: [00:26:57] Oh, wow.

Kit: [00:26:58] And then they decide, hey, I’m not going to let you do that to me and we’re going to work together. And two people are stronger than one, you know. Right.

Kim: [00:27:07] Wow.

Kit: [00:27:07] So all of a sudden they’ve learned agency. Right. They’ve they’ve gained a sense of agency that I can take care of myself and I can take care of the people that I care about and prevent abusive things from happening.

Kim: [00:27:25] Wow. Wow. Yeah, so, yeah.

Kit: [00:27:32] And sometimes the reality is abusive things happen. And. Where are you going to go with that? How are you going to respond to that? Are you going to fall apart?

Kim: [00:27:42] Right.

Kit: [00:27:42] Or are you going to find some way to incorporate this new reality into your life? Right. So it’s a great opportunity when debriefing about how you respond to crisis.

Kim: [00:28:00] Yeah, and in that type of a setting, you really have to debrief about it, not just let it happen and then not talk about it. But kind of help them explore what was happening, what was going on.

Kit: [00:28:14] Right.

Kim: [00:28:18] So so you were describing a way to build agency through something, you even use the word abusive. But through some kind of a dramatic experience during their art formation process. But you also said that they can build agency just through the process of trying something new and creating something new. Can you talk about that a little bit?

Kit: [00:28:44] Yeah, I think when people experience trauma, they begin to self identify sometimes as victims, and have the sense that the world is acting on them and that they don’t have control of it. And and one of the hardest things is to help survivors of trauma recognize that they do have agency and they do have power, even if they didn’t have power to prevent their abuse from happening or their trauma from happening in the past. Now they can. They can make choices to protect themselves in the future. And one way that I do that is I have them try something new every week. They’re exposed to a different medium every week. It can be really intimidating to try new things. And the fear of failure is very powerful. And so if they’re doing this every week and exploring different mediums and gaining a sense of mastery, that can really help to build more confidence.

[00:30:34] How is this process therapeutic?

Kit: [00:30:39] Well, scientists now know that the brain is somewhat flexible. So trying new things can actually transform neurological processes in the brain by strengthening new thought pathways. We’ve discovered that by changing their behavior, environmental factors, thoughts and emotions, people can actually change their own neurological processes and patterns, which I think is something really remarkable. It’s called neuroplasticity. And so we can use therapeutic art activities to change some of those brain structures. So, for example, we can disengage the release of stress hormones like cortisol by redirecting our energy to an activity that stimulates mindful concentration. Or we can build social attunement for people by doing synchronous activities like mirroring movements or making music together. And that helps people to be more attuned and more sensitive to what’s going on for others around them. And support executive function by doing different kinds of art activities that involve sequencing and storytelling and prioritization. Like drawing cartoons and that kind of thing.

Kit: [00:32:13] So I think there are lots of different ways to address therapeutic needs. And that’s why it’s really helpful to work with a knowledgeable facilitator who can help provide support and guidance about what activities are going to be the most helpful for you, for the specific issues that you want to work on. And if you don’t have access to a facilitator or art therapist, you can also just go online. You can sign up for art classes. I find that art journaling classes are particularly helpful for a lot of people and they’re really easily accessible online if they’re in a place where they don’t have access to an art therapist.

Kim: [00:32:56] OK. What is art journaling?

Kit: [00:32:59] Art journaling is you use lots of different kinds of media in layers on a page to express emotional content. So, for example, you might lay down a collage background and then paint over top of that and then write words or do some journaling on the page. And it’s a great way for people to express what’s going on with them internally and sometimes explore ideas if they aren’t really sure exactly why they’re feeling a particular way.

Kim: [00:33:40] I’m glad I asked you to explain that, because that’s not at all what I was imagining. OK. Yeah, that sounds really interesting. You know, this whole conversation gives me a new degree of respect for my children’s teachers, the art teachers, the art classes. And I know in some schools around the world, because of funding concerns, art education is being reduced, which I’m now appreciating on a whole new level why that is such a problem. One of my daughters, when she was young, was identified that she had some issues crossing the midline. And so it was explained to us how the two sides of the brain have to be able to talk to each other and have these physical connections in order to have success in reading and writing later, because reading and writing and you’re using the logical brain and the creative side of the brain simultaneously. And you have to have those connections. And those connections were built literally through physical activity. And so now I’m just seeing so many more layers to all of that through what you’ve described here today.

Kit: [00:34:57] That’s one reason why I have my students work on big pieces of paper. Because it forces them to cross the midline as they’re drawing big circles and making big things, using their whole arm movement to draw shapes. Because, again, we’re working to integrate the two parts of the brain. And one way to do that is to cross the midline of the body.

[00:35:25] Yeah.

Kim: [00:35:31] Wow, this has been a fascinating discussion. Is there anything else that has occurred to you that you would like to share now? I have one other question. If you don’t have anything else. If someone were to go looking for an art therapist, how might they figure out the qualifications or the skills or the specialization that is best suited for their situation. Or do you think that it has more to do with the personal connection, you know, having a meeting with the person and saying, do we just. Do we get along together? Do we like each other? How how would someone choose a therapist to work with?

Kit: [00:36:23] Most therapists have a description on their website of the kind of work that they do and the kinds of training that they have experienced. And so you can go onto their website to read more about their work and their theoretical perspectives. Art therapy historically was very rooted in psychodynamic theory, particularly Freud and Jung, and that heavily influences a lot of the work that many art therapists do these days. But nowadays, we’re realizing more and more that neurobiology and the ecological environment contribute also to these issues. And so we’re we’re sort of being informed by the modern neuroscience of what actually happens in the brain when people are creating. And so I think it would be important to sort of think about what kind of psychological theory makes most sense to you and to seek out a therapist who works within that theoretical perspective.

Kit: [00:37:39] And there are also, you know, different people respond to different kinds of art modalities. Some are going to be more responsive to dance and movement therapy and others are going to be more responsive to music. It really depends on your personal interests. And also the specific issues you have.

Kim: [00:37:57] Yeah that makes sense.

Kit: [00:37:59] You know, if you’re if you’re trauma is very physically embodied, the symptoms, you may want to make sure you find a therapist who is incorporating art and movement as a part of their therapeutic process.

Kim: [00:38:17] Yeah, that makes sense. That’s helpful. Thank you.

Kit: [00:38:22] Sure.

Kim: [00:38:24] All right. Well, I just want to thank you again for coming in and sharing a little bit of your expertise, and I suspect that a lot of people will have a new perspective and a new appreciation for art therapy and just art in general. So thank you so much for that contribution to the world of expats and families.

Kit: [00:38:52] Kim, I really appreciate this opportunity to have a chat with you and talk about some of these things that I’m learning as I go, and I look forward to further conversations.

Kim: [00:39:04] Great. Thank you so much.

Kit: [00:39:06] All right. Take care.