A Leap of Faith: The Call to Art

Ellen Horovitz presents a model for art therapists based upon a transformation process that basically states that the clinician must "Be Present, Be Open, and Invite Change." Authentic communication and embracing one's art as a vehicle of communication are viewed as the primary process gain that informs the therapist. This in turn generates a secondary gain for the patient/client, which is wellness. Horovitz postulates three key concepts that have proven to have far-reaching applications: (1)invoking a studio art therapy approach, (2) "elemental play," and (3)"soulution." Authenticity, self- disclosure, and acceptance are emphasized as key elements in the transformative process. Horovitz postulates "the inherent possibilities in using myself as a model for transformation when working with emotionally disturbed patients as well as within the framework of my own ministry."The spiritual dimension is highlighted throughout this work through its focus on the issues of mourning and loss. Horovitz states, "Beginning with losses connects patients to their very origin of dis-ease and sets the stage for inclusion of the spiritual dimension." She cautions the therapist not to ignore these issues because they are viewed as the principal steps toward recovery. Horovitz explains, "Without this primacy, there may be change but not resolution, evolution, or soulution. Instead, the symptoms will reappear until those losses are aired, examined, and most importantly accepted. It is then and only then that the real work can begin."In essence, the above quote highlights the premise of this book. Horovitz invites the reader to join her on an inspirational journey as she explores her personal issues of mourning and loss from childhood to adulthood. She airs, examines, and ultimately comes to accept these issues, which she feels have enabled her to live a more authentic life, her primary gain. She feels that her patients/clients benefit through secondary gain as they recover. In addition, she feels her students benefit through tertiary gain as they train to enter into the art therapy profession.Horovitz begins her inspirational journey with an in-depth self-inquiry by exploring the relationship among "madness, creativity, and the continual quest for transformation via personal experiences as an artist/writer and human being." Her mourning and loss issues are centered on the mother/daughter relationship. The concept of "elemental play" is viewed as a state with intuiting spiritual inquiry at its highest level. "Soulution" embraces the concept of turning into another person's enegy.Throughout this work, Horovitz has demonstrated that the ability to mourn has given her vitality. Self-empathy is the individual's ability to develop empathy for one's own experience - to see it and understand it more truthfully and compassionately. In this case, for Horovitz, a new self-empathy with personal experiences was born out of mourning. I

In this book, Horovitz once again takes her reader into spaces that therapists never dare discuss nor reveal. Using her own psychosocial history as a vantage point, Horovitz reveals insights into her own artwork, fiction writing, and background. These revelations seed the groundwork for her theory of "soulution" which "evokes the concept of wedding a humanistic approach to one's work and operating from the heart". (pg.3)In weaving this position, Horovitz shines through again and models authentic behavior at its best with stunning case studies embedded in fascinating and page-turning research.A must for any therapist whether art therapist or not. This book, a genuine paradigm shift for Art Therapy, parallels what Freud did for the field of Psychology.

Since I'm not an art therapist myself, I can't respond to this book at the same kind of length as the previous reviewer. Still, I must say that Horovitz is doing significant work, making sure her colleagues in the field don't lose sight of core notions of spirituality & whole health, as they expand the methodology & the range of the therapeutic project. THE CALL TO ART is thoughtful in the best sense -- the sense that includes the heart & soul as well as mind.

In this book art therapist, artist and writer Ellen Horovitz suggests a return to the art studio and the sources of creativity and transformation inherent in the artistic process. The author writes: "It is time...to embrace the importance of creativity, time to stop 'excusing' the art in art therapy". Horovitz asks some probing and fundamental questions and breaks out of the "therapy box" of conventional clinical notions in often unorthodox and courageous ways. She does this by proposing a humanistic approach to art therapy based on authenticity of expression that embraces self-examination, discovery, intuition, risk taking and inner growth of both client and therapist.At the core of her understanding of the creative process in both art and art therapy is her concept of "elemental play", a process of creative immersion and flow which "simply allows the art to be the healing agent". As this process of elemental play enters into the therapeutic relationship she writes "I allow my energy to mix with the other. This is not about loss of boundaries but rather it is co-creating, connecting...I am not the healing agent but rather a participant in wellness: mine as well as the other person's...the mixing of forces becomes the 'soulution'".Adressing the topic of transference Horovitz writes "analytic neutrality is a mythological position of which I am clearly incapable...because, alas, I am human". She interweaves autobiography, artwork and fictional writing about her childhood memories, demonstrating personally the healing power of the creative process. Horovitz writes "Facing one's past leads not only to insight and enhanced self-understanding but also informs the therapist when contemplating the effect of transference and countertransference issues when they arise in treatment...you can't take your patients any further than you have gone yourself".The author insists that the art therapist can use any creative medium that emerges while working with a client. Several insightful case studies are presented in which media such as photography, animation, computer art and activities such as "walking therapy" and cooking are used effectively with clients along with the traditional art mediums. Other case studies document how the client's discovery of their artistic talent through art therapy dramatically changed the course of their lives. The writer presents art therapy diagnostic assessments of client's artwork along with genograms and psychosocial histories at the beginning of the case studies. Narratives describing individual and family sessions and the client's progress in art therapy accompany each study.The nature of creativity and the creative process is explored through a series of interviews the author conducts with writers, poets, artists and art therapists. The question "why do we make art?" is explored throughout the book from a plurality of views including writings in art therapy, psychology, neurology and al