We have a tendency to think that Art Therapy uses “symbols” rather than “words”, as in “Talk Therapy.” I want to remind us that words are symbols too—really language is a staggeringly complex system of spoken and written metaphors that we can no longer recognize as metaphors.
What an excellent point that Jim Nolan makes about the shortcut description many art therapists use to describe what we do. It makes me want to rethink my elevator speech to be more accurate. Wittgenstein would be overjoyed about this discussion!
This excellent article addresses some of the ideas I put forth in my master’s thesis — including lots of stolen stuff from the honorable Wittgenstein. Great share. Thank you so much!