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RAW Art Works: Jason Cruz

Jason Cruz

Jason Cruz

Congratulations to Boston art therapist Jason Cruz! He was chosen by Bank of America as a Local Hero, a part of their Neighborhood Excellence Initiative.

“The foundation of RAW is art therapy. Our goal is to have a space where kids can really find out who they want to become..

Here you can talk about that stuff…those life choices [they’re] considering…and make art. A lot of our kids, from what they tell me, would stay in gangs or join them, would have been shot or killed…would be pregnant, would be addicted to drugs [if it weren’t for RAW]”…

View a video of Jason discussing his work here.

Hat tip, Cathy Malchiodi for originally posting this on fb.

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Artists and Activists in Burma

Hat tip: Sara Windrem for emailing this article from Smithsonian Magazine to me.

Yangon’s tiny avant-garde community has been putting on secret exhibitions in spaces hidden throughout this decrepit city—in violation of the censorship laws that require every piece of art to be vetted for subversive content by a panel of “experts.”

“We have to be extremely cautious,” says Zoncy, a diminutive 24-year-old woman who paints at the studio. “We are always aware of the danger of spies.”

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Schizophrenia can be simulated…

…within a computer program meant to mimic learning within the human brain. One more step towards understanding the origins of this often debilitating disorder, and support of the hyperlearning hypothesis.

Read more here and here.

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Demystifying the Online Presence: Art Therapists and the Internet

Save the date: August 4th, FREE webinar hosted by AATA with yours truly! Register here.

It’s natural to feel skeptical or overwhelmed about the changing nature of social interaction and marketing. Although disregarding these changes may feel like the safe choice, this also limits your ability to network professionally, reach new clients and help others.

This Webinar, presented by Liz Beck, a Registered Art Therapist (ATR) living in the San Francisco Bay Area, will address common questions asked by art therapists about the benefits and pitfalls of having a digital presence, giving you the tools to decide whether being available online is right for you.

Topics include:
• What it means to have an online presence, and how it’s useful.
• Common questions and concerns about having an online presence.
• Appropriate places for a therapist to build an online presence, including a discussion about Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
• Why having a website is important.
• Why it’s important to keep your online content updated.
• What information is useful to include on a professional website.
• Simple guidelines to keep your professional online presence ethical.

If you know anyone who would benefit from joining this webinar, please encourage them to attend. There are way too many art therapists out there who avoid getting online and using new technology to the benefit of themselves and their clients.

Thank you for your support!

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Redesign!

I hope you like the new look of the blog. Any feedback would be much appreciated :)

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Ethical Challenges and the Internet

Thinking about social media, email, google searches and it’s relationship to ethics in psychotherapy? Read this interesting and informative article written by Sara Martin of the Monitor, an APA publication.

Ethics codes are in desperate need to catch up to the times! But, that doesn’t mean we can’t use our common sense and knowledge to practice ethically to maintain a separation between our personal and professional lives.