Art Therapy as Cumulative Trauma Repair

Jennifer Albright Knash works with Platteville Family Resource Center in Richland Center, Wisconsin, utilizing art therapy with children, teens, and adults who have experienced cumulative trauma. She is the former Academic Programs Director at Southwestern College, Santa Fe, NM.

“Knash remarks that within the profession of art therapy, there seems to be an implicit understanding of the power of imagery in trauma therapy. Her doctoral dissertation, synthesized in this text, sought to provide an evidenced based explanation, and practical application of art therapy approaches in the treatment of trauma that is accessible yet deeply resonant. She enhances understanding with compelling vignettes from her own clinical experience of over 20 years. She shares prompts for directive and non-directive approaches, detailing specific media and processes, and invites the use of music and movement in accompaniment. As a practicing clinician and art therapist educator, I have not encountered other texts that synthesize these theories with such clarity and readability.”- Denise R. Wolf, Associate Clinical Professor at Drexel University, in Journal of the American Art Therapy Association“The question of how to heal from trauma, particularly when the damage is ingrained within both the body and the mind, is an essential one in therapeutic practices. In her book Art Therapy as Cumulative Trauma Repair, Jennifer Albright Knash offers an insightful exploration of how art therapy can address trauma in a way that goes beyond verbal expression. Art-making is posited as a potential language, offering a means of being seen and understood, even when words fail. This book contributes significantly to the field of creative arts therapies (CAT) by weaving together theory and practice, demonstrating art therapy’s capacity to engage with and repair the effects of cumulative trauma. By integrating somatic, meta-verbal, and narrative approaches, Knash provides a comprehensive framework for therapeutic intervention that honours the complexity of trauma and facilitates healing through creative engagement.”- Georgia Ruby Polichroniadis MAT, BFA(Hons), BFA, in Journal of Creative Arts Therapies

• PART 1: Laying the groundwork 1. Introduction 2. Terminology 3. Connecting the Expressive Therapies Continuum (ETC) and the Four Functional Domains (from NMT) PART 2: Exploration of Art Therapy Approaches 4. Directive versus Nondirective 5. Collaborative Approach to Media and/or Directives PART 3: Integration and Regulation 6. Engaging Sensory Integration and the Kinesthetic/ Sensory Levels of the Expressive Therapies Continuum 7. Engaging Emotional Regulation and Perceptual/ Affective Levels of the Expressive Therapies Continuum PART 4. Building the Therapeutic Alliance and Relational Capacity 8. Art Media and Art Interventions that Will Enhance the Therapeutic Alliance 9. The Artwork as Container: Defining Safety and Creating Safety PART 5. Embracing the Cognitive/ Symbolic and the Creative Levels 10. Bridging the Bottom-Up and the Top-Down through Oscillation and Metaphoric Meaning Making 11. The Creative and The Imagination Network 12. Survival Responses and Adaptive Options PART 6. Conclusion