Art Therapy

What do you do when emotions pile up—complex, hard-to-express feelings that words can’t quite capture? You can pour them onto paper or canvas, shape them from clay or plasticine, sing, act, dance, write... and so much more. Art therapy is a vast toolkit and a powerful method for expression, an endless creative workshop that reveals and highlights our individuality, depth, creativity, spontaneity, and the multifaceted nature of who we are. I deeply value this approach, specialize in it, and apply it successfully in my work with both children and adults.

Alina Firsel

Art therapy, as the name suggests, is psychotherapy through artistic expression. It’s my favorite method because it allows exploring emotions, inner experiences, and expressing them symbolically through drawing, sculpting, dancing, or singing. In this creative process, we uncover aspects of our inner world where words often fall short. Art therapy sessions may involve paints (gouache, watercolors), pencils, markers (including finger paints), as well as clay, pebbles, shells, fabric, ribbons, paper, and anything else that happens to be within reach.

Dina Vasylchenko

И

I love and use art therapy because it helps clients channel their accumulated negativity—through drawing, sculpting, or movement—into a tangible form. From there, they can transform it into something more manageable, freeing themselves from its burden. It also allows them to creatively express their state, mood, or emotions, gain deeper self-understanding, and use these new insights to improve another aspect of their life.

Ирина Алексеевна Селивановская

I love and use this method because, for me, it’s not just a form of psychotherapy but also an effective tool for diagnosing both adults and children. People often struggle to express their feelings, emotions, or experiences in words, but art therapy—whether through drawing, sculpting, or other creative outlets—makes it easier to convey their inner state while unlocking their creative potential. What matters most isn’t technical skill or prior experience; the process itself and the insights it reveals during discussion are what truly count. That’s why it’s one of my favorite methods.

Nataliya Kolodiazhna

Л

The most transformative aspect of art therapy is its ability to foster a dialogue with the unconscious. Images are the universal language through which conscious and unconscious minds communicate. Whether through drawing, storytelling, sculpting, music, or movement, art therapy engages with imagery to unlock deeper insights. I also include dream work within art therapy, as dreams are another expression of our creative self. When a person engages in this dialogue with their unconscious, they gain the capacity not just to follow conventional logic but to uncover new possibilities they can harness in challenging situations.

Лариса Владимировна Яновская

М

Art therapy is a wonderful method I incorporate across all areas of my practice—whether in consultations, workshops, seminars, or even casual conversations with engaged individuals. This approach knows no boundaries and works well with students, children, educators, and parents alike. What I love about it is the way creativity helps uncover answers to meaningful questions by reframing situations through an artistic lens. The process itself brings joy and teaches people to express their emotions freely and spontaneously. This makes art therapy especially valuable for those who struggle to articulate their feelings in words. It’s also highly effective for addressing a wide range of interpersonal and internal conflicts. Over the years, I’ve never met anyone who remained indifferent to art—or to art therapy as a method.

Мария Сергеевна Волошина

Art therapy allows individuals to express unconscious processes through drawing, sculpting, storytelling, or poetry. It helps bring complexes into conscious awareness by bypassing psychological defense mechanisms, making it easier to process negative emotions and discover personal resources for resolving seemingly insurmountable challenges. I frequently use this method, especially because it can be effectively applied to both adults and children.

Tetiana Stanislavivna Leontiuk

М

One of my favorite therapeutic approaches is art therapy. It’s one of the gentlest yet most profound methods for addressing psychological challenges, especially when words fail to capture a person’s state. Through drawing, sculpting, or crafting stories that reflect a problem or mood, individuals receive meaningful insights from their subconscious. Art therapy helps release negative emotions, process inner experiences, channel aggression, reduce mental tension, find calm, unlock creativity, and strengthen psychological well-being. No artistic skills are required—this method thrives on spontaneity. Nearly anyone can participate, regardless of age or talent, as the focus isn’t on artistic mastery but on resolving psychological issues. It empowers people to recognize their emotions, trust themselves, and act with greater freedom. Art therapy is particularly effective with children, who think in images, perceive the world vividly, and easily immerse themselves in imagination. Sometimes, just a few sessions can help a child overcome fears.

Мария Сергеевна Кульчицкая

В

Art therapy is a contemporary approach in psychotherapy that uses artistic expression as a tool for healing and self-discovery. This method encompasses visual arts such as drawing, painting, sculpting, collages, installations, body art, and other forms of creative expression. It taps into a person’s inner strengths, creative potential, and capacity for self-regulation, helping to unlock deep personal resources. Art therapy requires no artistic skill—anyone can participate, gaining emotional uplift, building self-confidence, and fostering an active life stance. The method is universally accessible, has no contraindications, and integrates seamlessly with other therapeutic approaches. It serves two primary functions: diagnostic and therapeutic. Group art therapy sessions are used in education, healthcare, and social work to develop mutual support skills, address shared challenges, and enhance self-esteem.

Виктория Ратеева

М

Art therapy is a method that helps reduce stress and unlock creative potential. It can serve as a powerful tool in the hands of an experienced psychologist for psychocorrection, as well as an accessible way to foster self-development and personal growth. Through art therapy, individuals can discover new talents, and its techniques become reliable allies in various aspects of life. This approach is particularly valuable for those who find it difficult to express their emotions verbally—creativity allows them to convey feelings and fantasies more easily than through words. Visualized thoughts and images often accelerate and ease the process of recognizing and processing experiences.

Мария Фабричева

Art therapy is a multifaceted approach that unlocks the creative potential of the brain’s right hemisphere, often underdeveloped due to an overemphasis on logical thinking from an early age. By engaging with imagery and creativity, this method awakens intuition, originality, and untapped potential in clients. Techniques in art therapy, such as right-brain drawing, help break free from rigid self-perceptions, fostering growth not only in artistic expression but also in personal development and life organization.

Nataliia Heorhiyivna Rubel

Art therapy helps 'special children' express themselves through drawing, revealing their personality, emotions, fears, desires, and needs. They don’t need to prove anything to anyone—they create, imagine, grow, and thrive in a world of creativity. Art therapy brings children, parents, educators, and their environment closer together, fostering social adaptation.

Nataliya Burova

The name of this method is directly tied to creativity, self-expression, and freedom. The key advantage of art therapy is that it unlocks our "inner child"—the source of emotions, sensory experiences, and joy in discovering the world. Think back to childhood, when we loved to draw, color, and mold with clay, as if we could do it forever. The inspiration was so intense at times that creativity spilled beyond the paper, onto walls, cabinets, and other objects, much to our parents’ dismay. There was no fear of making mistakes or getting messy, no burden of responsibility—just vivid emotions and the freedom to express ourselves.
This is the essence of art therapy: reconnecting with what once sparked such strong emotions. For a time, it allows us to step away from overwhelming responsibilities and social constraints—like the fear of judgment or appearing unskilled—so we can embrace imperfection. We don’t need to be professional artists or sculptors; we simply get to be, to feel, and to channel our emotions through creativity.

Viktoriia Nosenko

Art therapy helps address a range of psychological challenges. I incorporate this approach when working with trauma, inner conflicts, and fears. Through creative expression, individuals enter a space where they can freely express themselves, reduce stress, and rebuild self-confidence. Depending on personality traits, I select the most suitable art therapy techniques for each situation. This method has no restrictions or contraindications—it is inherently resourceful, allowing anyone to convey their emotions and state through creativity, movement, or drawing, reconnecting with their inner child.

Nataliya Ponomareva

When guided by a skilled professional, art therapy techniques gently and carefully address the most painful traumatic experiences. They help process difficult emotional states, foster creativity, and subtly guide individuals toward finding solutions in challenging situations, promoting healing on multiple levels. Sometimes, the creative process itself holds greater significance for the client than professional intuition, empathy, or other therapeutic tools.

Adult clients often share that they haven’t painted, sculpted, listened to stories, or played since childhood—since they were 8 to 10 years old. Art therapy offers a chance to rediscover that these activities are accessible to everyone. What makes this method so valuable is its ability to not only provide resources for recovery but also recreate those uplifting moments that inspire living. It allows individuals to feel like creators, enriches their spirit, and avoids imposing rigid solutions.

Clients frequently recognize their own ineffective behavioral patterns, harmful habits, and choose more constructive ways of engaging with the world. My role is to help them articulate their thoughts and rehearse real-life situations in a safe therapeutic space.

Halyna Leonidivna Ruryk

Drawing in art therapy is about uncovering the story woven between lines and images. Each creative moment is unique in its interplay of colors, ideas, and the deep impulses that rise from the subconscious. When we draw, we craft something extraordinary—whether we choose to share it with the world or keep it hidden. Our creation becomes a brushstroke on the canvas of our inner world, a fragment of a multifaceted soul that narrates the story of our lives: moments of joy, sorrow, triumph, failure, love, and rejection. This is a story unfiltered by self-criticism, the need to please others, or our own complexes—it reveals the most intimate, personal experiences we cannot put into words but can express without fear. The creative process acts like the release of pent-up energy, flowing from the heart and soul to ease inner tension. It helps us step back and see ourselves anew, discovering something inspiring within that fuels personal growth and the pursuit of our dreams. What we cannot articulate but feel deeply finds expression in our art—when we create something unique, with our own distinct style. To see and feel our lives through drawing, to delve into the subtle layers of our own soul—that is the essence of working with drawing in art therapy. For me, as an art therapist, every client’s drawing is a one-of-a-kind experience, a reminder of how profound and unique human souls truly are.

Olha Sheikina