In May 2020, art therapists shared their experiences during the pandemic in the American Art Therapy Association’s (AATA) Coronavirus Impact Survey. Our report told the story of art therapists standing on the frontlines of the pandemic while coping with tremendous challenges. Now, a year into the pandemic, we are launching a follow-up survey to assess how art therapists are doing. While our last survey focused on the entire art therapy community (including students and educators), this survey is focused on clinicians’ work with clients. You don’t need to be an AATA member to participate. Click HERE to take the survey  It's 15 questions and will take 5-10 minutes to complete. We would appreciate your response by April 19, 2021.

We are thrilled to announce that the Tennessee House of Representatives passed the art therapy licensure bill (HB 183) on April 5, 2021, by a 81 to 7 vote! The bill, having passed the Senate in March, was delivered to Governor Bill Lee on April 7th. According to Tennessee procedures, the Governor has 10 days (excluding Sundays) to sign or veto legislation, or it becomes law without a signature. We expect action by April 19, 2021.

 

Art Therapy: Journal of the American Art Therapy Association is seeking papers for the upcoming special issue on the topic “Resilience and Transformation:Learning from 2020” and is offering limited-time free access to two articles in the current issue. All the details can be found in the call for papers. Manuscripts are requested by July 31, 2021. 

Creative Forces®: National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Military Healing Arts Network has recently issued two Requests for Applications (RFAs) for feasibility/pilot studies in art therapy and music therapy. The prioritized research question for art therapy is “How and to what extent does art therapy affect emotional processing and self-regulation for service members and veterans?” The application period is June 2-16, 2021. Download the art therapy RFA to learn all the details.

As we begin to move out of survival mode and cautiously into more optimistic and hopeful territory with the distribution of vaccines, I’ve actually noticed an increase in the reported anxiety, depression, and grief among individuals. I think people are finally feeling a sense of safety and room to breathe and are thus finally reckoning with the emotional fallout of this past year. It gives me hope though that so many people are seeking help and support and that the stigma of taking care of our mental health seems to be dropping further and further away as a result. 

It's application season! Help AATA celebrate individual members making an impact in our profession and community by applying or nominating a colleague. Find details about all opportunities in this article and on MyAATA, and learn more about specific applications in separate articles in the Member Corner. Applications are open in the following categories (listed in order of deadline): Multicultural (May 1), Scholarships (May 1), Nominations (May 6), Honors (June 15), Research (June 15) and Governmental Affairs (June 15).

The call for applications for AATA scholarships closes on May 1, 2021, so you still have time! The benefits of receiving a scholarship extend beyond dollars and cents. When you receive a national scholarship from the AATA, you experience increased networking opportunities from peers and colleagues. Read more to learn about how some of the recipients of 2020 scholarships benefitted from their award and imagine yourself as an awardee in 2021. Find more information and applications on MyAATA!

AATA’s new 2021 Member Demographics Report is now available online! This report is intended to be a current, shareable snapshot of the AATA membership community and contains information collected through Feb. 9, 2021. 

VIDEO: "Aquí Entre Nos', te traemos una entrevista en exclusiva con Nadia Paredes, artista y especialista en arte terapia, quien nos cuenta sobre su trabajo con diarios de arte, pintura intuitiva y los cuantos talleres que imparte🎨 ¡No te la pierdas!"

"People impacted by the stress of the COVID-19 pandemic can use art to express their emotions through a new grant program at Dallas Art Therapy, a nonprofit in Richardson. Dallas Art Therapy received a $10,000 grant from the Communities Foundation of Texas to help adults, teens and children who are contending with anxiety, depression and other mental health challenges related to the pandemic."

"When you hear the words “art therapy,” what comes to mind? Coloring in an adult coloring book? Taking a paint-and-sip class? Arranging fresh-cut flowers, or making a collage with all of your old concert tickets? While art is at the center of these activities, and you feel calmer and more at ease as you’re tapping into your creativity, what you’re doing isn’t art therapy in the technical sense. Art therapy manager, Tammy Shella, PhD, ATR-BC, explains what art therapy is, who can benefit from it and what an art therapist actually does."

"Talking about finding the right school for his son, Rajendra says that the process was tedious and important since every child with ASD (autism spectrum disorder) has specific needs. When Rupak was a student at WeCAN, he took part in a year-long art therapy programme conducted by an American art therapist. Rajendra says that this therapy helped him recognise his aptitude and passion for art. Within a year, Rupak held his first solo show at Forum Art Gallery, Adyar, with over 50 works on display."

VIDEO: "For students like Smith, she lost her creative outlet to see friends and express herself. One program out of Edinboro University it aimed to help students express themselves and cope with their feelings. 'Because we all have baggage, and especially now going from one Zoom meeting to the next with barely a potty break in between then it's good for us to have that moment as a transitional period to come in, close the door, sit down, relax,' says Shelia Lorenzo De La Pena, Art Therapy Counselor." She teaches coping through art and says anyone can do it to be able to escape what's going on around them."

PODCAST: "Finding new uses for old medications isn’t a new practice. But when COVID-19 turned into a pandemic last year, the race was on to find anything already on the market to fight the illness caused by the virus." Guests on All Sides with Ann Fisher discuss the business of repurposing drugs in a pandemic. At 40:43, Cheryl Pete, ATR-BC and clinical director at Art Therapy Studio shares her take.

"In this predominantly white suburb, artists have been arriving since last summer to memorialize what happened 30.1 miles away, outside Cup Foods in south Minneapolis...Liberian-American painter Lyssa Karpeh was new to doing outdoor murals, but she said she was happy to have something to take her out of her studio. Karpeh is a graduate student in art therapy at Adler University and founder of “Free in Color,” a non-profit organization in the Twin Cities that helps get children creating art."