Brenda McCullers
April 15, 2014
Annotated Bibliography Project
Field of Inquiry – Art Programs for Children Struggling with disease
Arts in Medicine. (2010). Rural Communites Toolkit. Retrieved April 5, 2014, from http://www.arts.ufl.edu/cam/programDev_planDev.aspx
The "Rural Communities Toolkit" is a program development resource for people interested in creating an arts in healthcare program for rural communities. It is offered through the University of Florida Arts in Medicine and the College of Fine Arts. The toolkit provides an easy to understand, step-by-step program that includes development resources, program model resources, and web links. The first section, development resources, provides information on assessing the need for an arts in healthcare program through community resource mapping. Once a need is established, the next section, program model resources, offers links to program models that are successfully operating in Florida. Some of the models provide art programs for patients struggling with disease, others promote community wellness, and several incorporate both. The final section, web links, contains links to numerous websites that “provide resources for the development of arts in healthcare programs and projects”.[1] This website provides essential data on researching and developing an arts in healthcare program in a rural setting and would be excellent for anyone interested in this. It provides necessary steps to establish a need, examples that are effective, and resources for success. It is in agreement with Fitzgerald and Caruso in that an arts based program can help the physical, mental, and emotional well being of patients and it enhances the quality of care provided by the healthcare institution.
Caruso, I. (2009). Art’s Healing Powers. Saturday Evening Post, 281, 70-73.
Caruso is an author based out of New York. He has written books and articles for The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Saturday Evening Post, Washington Post, and the History Channel Magazine, and more. This informative article is written for the Saturday Evening Post and covers what Caruso believes to be indisputable growing evidence of art’s therapeutic benefits. Caruso is not promoting a specific program but presenting research from a collection of different programs. It provides positive input for the benefits of art for patients of various diseases. Caruso includes information to support his belief in the benefits of art for patients from: an art program that works with patients through Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota; a free monthly program for Alzheimer’s patients through Museum of Modern Art in New York; art workshops offered at Hewlett House, a cancer-support resource center on Long Island; the University of Michigan Health System’s Art Cart program; and from the art therapist of Levindale Hebrew Geriatric Center in Baltimore. Some of Caruso’s claims include: art helps ailing children gain some control over their helplessness; art reduces pain in cancer patients; art results in improvement in pain and significant improvement in mood and anxiety reduction; art allows suppressed emotions to surface; art stimulates our neurology; art counteracts feelings of helplessness; art is a vehicle to communicate emotions that children may not be able to articulate; and finally, art has helped as much as any medication. Caruso’s findings follow the beliefs of Fitzgerald. This article would benefit anyone interested in the therapeutic benefits of art.
Cleveland, W. (2010). Arts-based Community Development: Mapping the Terrain. Retrieved March 3, 2014 from http://animatingdemocracy.org/resource/arts-based-community-development-mapping-terrain.
Cleveland is an author, activist, teacher, lecturer, and director of the Center for the Study of Art and Community. In this article he describes his understanding of the changes and the growth that has occurred within the arts-based community development. In addition, he describes and discusses mapping the arts-based development within communities by dividing the area into four categories, build and improve, educate and inform, inspire and mobilize, and nurture and heal. This allows examination and investigation as to what is working effectively and what needs change. He continues with insight gained from research as to what he believes works and what he believes does not work for development. Local ownership and strong relationships are two things he considers essential. Along with that, he feels clear communication is crucial and effective training is necessary. This article specifies basic research and assessment that needs to take place within an area before any other steps are taken to create a new art program. It is a recommended read for anyone desiring to start an art based business.
Dunn-Snow, P., D’Amelia, G. (2000). How Art Teachers Can Enhance Artmaking as a Therapeutic Experience: Art Therapy and Art Education. Art education 53(3), 46-53.
Dunn-Snow is an art teacher, art therapist, currently working as the Director of the Graduate Art Therapy Program at Barry University in Miami Shores, Florida. D’Amelio is also an art teacher, art therapist, working at Wakeland Elementary School in Bradenton, Florida. This article discusses ways an art teacher can enhance the therapeutic aspects of their lessons. First, the art teacher can recognize that art is a creative process that moves through different stages. By helping students work through the creative process the art teacher can assist them in reorganizing thoughts and beliefs and develop critical thinking skills. Second, art teachers can empathetically talk with students about their artwork, helping them to express their thoughts and feelings. Third, the art teacher should recognize that various art media could evoke different emotions. Decisions such as fluid versus resistive, simple verses complex, and structured verses unstructured need to be made based on the students. Finally, the art teacher needs to communicate with other people involved in the student’s life because often times, graphic expressions speak louder than words. This article emphasizes the importance of the process rather than the quality of the artwork. It is beneficial because it demonstrates the power of art to transform the student’s life. It unwraps teaching strategies to help students develop emotionally while they create artwork. A good read for any art teacher.
Fitzgerald, W. (2011). Signs of Hope: Children’s Art Project. In Conquest Fall 2011 ed online. Retrieved from http://www.mdanderson.org/publications/conquest/issues/2011-fall/children-s-art-project.html#.
This article is from Conquest, a quarterly publication by the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. In it, Fitzgerald talks about the Children’s Art Program (CAP) at the Center. The thirty-nine year old program, made possible with assistance from volunteers and art instructors, is for children diagnosed with cancer. It provides the opportunity for these children to work alongside each other, building a bond between them. As the children create art, they support, inspire, and encourage one another. The author shares personal testimonies from children and parents who have benefitted from the program. He goes on to tell of participants who eventually return to volunteer at the center. “During treatment so much is out of the patient’s control, but the time spent creating artwork allows each child to feel empowered,” says Shannan Murray, CAP’s executive director. “It’s a creative outlet that provides a way to look beyond the disease, and this offers the patient hope.” This is in agreement with Caruso. Although the author is writing the article to promote MD Anderson Cancer Center, Child Life Specialist, Renee Hunte[2], is in agreement with Fitzgerald. She believes that programs like CAP benefit children being treated for cancer by helping them look beyond the disease. CAP is a testimony to the benefits of an art program for children struggling with disease. Any organization or person interested in starting an art program for children struggling from disease would benefit from reading this article.
Green, J., & Kindseth, A. (2011). Art all day: Distinction and interrelation of school based and out-of-school arts learning. Studies in Art Education, 52(4), 337-341.
In this article, authors Green and Kindseth discuss the Manchester Craftsmen’s Guild (MCG) after-school Apprenticeship Training Program (ATP). They begin the article by saying “Quality arts learning can be a vehicle for personal transformation” (p 337). The authors believe that MCG is an example of this as their students exhibit a sense of self, and a passion for learning. They go on to explain that this organization was started from the dream of one man, Bill Strickland. As a teenager, his high school art teacher, Frank Ross, encouraged and mentored him. It was his desire to offer the same opportunity to others, so in 1968, he founded MCG. Today this program is nationally recognized and used as a model for others to follow. Like others, Strickland believes the environment must be safe and must promote healthy relationship among adults and peers. He promotes and teaches leadership skills and provides students with opportunities to grow and learn. This article encourages and inspires one to follow their dream. It is an excellent read for anyone.
HHC Art. (2014). Retrieved March 9, 2014, from http://www.nychhcart.org/index.html#.
The Harlem Horizon Art Studio at Harlem Hospital Center (HHC) in New York started in 1989 and has been operating for over 20 years. This program offers an art studio where pediatric inpatients suffering trauma, as well as outpatients and community members of all ages, can express themselves through creating art. The sessions average fifteen to twenty participants. The participants do not receive formal training; rather they are encouraged to develop their own personal artistic styles through drawing and painting freely. Patients' work is displayed in the hospital and at galleries throughout the northeast. HHC states that “evidence indicates that participation in or exposure to the arts reduces pain, improves quality of life, and helps caregivers too.”[3] This is in agreement with CAP, Caruso, and Fitzgerald. An example they share is the story of Abraham Daniel. At the age of nine he suffered a broken spine and was in a coma for over a month. Daniel was one of the first patients to create art at the HHC Art studio and today is still part of the studio, working with other victims of trauma. This website points to the success of an art program for patients.
Johnson, E. R. (2009). Emily R. Johnson Artist and Art Therapist in Louisville, KY. Segment from Insight Communications Villionaire. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TsTgQG2wvz8.
Emily R. Johnson is an artist and expressive art therapist with Norton Cancer Institute at Kosair Children's Hospital. She graduated with a degree in studio art. After working for two years in a children’s hospital as an art instructor, she went to graduate school and received her MA in Expressive Art Therapy. This video is an informative piece on Johnson. It features her work as an art therapist and her personal artwork. It is very informative and gives insight and direction into art projects that help children with cancer. In this video, Johnson shares that a lot of the children she works with are really scared and really angry. Artwork is a way for them to talk about their feelings safely. It’s a way to express what they are feeling when they may not have the language to do so. She explains that sometimes the children do not even know how they are feeling and those feelings come out through their artwork. She states, “Artwork provides children that do not have any control over their lives, to have an area that they do have control over.” This goes along with what Shannan Murray, CAP’s executive director said. Johnson is also in agreement with the Lombardi Cancer Center at Georgetown University Hospital, in that she believes it is also important to include art projects for family members. This video provides insight for anyone working with children struggling with cancer.
Kim, J. B., Kirchhoff, M. & Whitsett, S. (2011). Expressive arts group therapy with middle-school aged children from military families. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 38(5), 356-362.
This article written by Kim and Kirchhoff, Licensed Clinical Social Workers and Whitsett, PhD describes eight expressive arts group therapy sessions made up of middle school students from active military families. Like Dunn-Snow, D’Amelia, and Leeuwenburgh, they emphasize the importance of the process rather than the product. They believe the selection of quality art materials and supplies are essential and that the materials should be “low skill/high sensitivity” so the participant can concentrate on process rather than manipulating the material. The artistic product is used to increase self-expression and to deepen self-awareness. They believe another important element is to provide an age-appropriate, safe, and supportive environment. This follows Richards’ (HHAS) and Strickland’s (MCG) beliefs that the environment must feel safe. Within group settings, the authors believe it is important to present activities that encourage relatedness between the participants. In one activity participants were asked to draw their first names using a variety of art materials. In another, participants constructed a group sculpture. First they created drawings and then they placed them in an arrangement that showed how they related to each other’s issues. At the last session, they used air-dry clay to create visual images reflecting their feelings about the ending of the group. This article had excellent suggestions for activities and stressed the importance of age appropriate activities and open communication. It would benefit anyone interested in starting a support group for middle school students.
Leeuwenburgh, E. (2000). Children, Art, and Home Health Care: the Universal Language. Home Health Care Manage Practice 12(5), 40-45.
Leeuwenburgh is a licensed professional counselor and wrote this article for people within the health care profession that work with children. In the article she explains that people are born with an innate desire to create, therefore health care professionals should engage children and elicit their perspectives and experiences with art. She states that art therapy is “ currently considered a ‘Complimentary Medicine’ with elements necessary to produce healing” (p 41) therefore, art should be used as an option for communication with children. She describes how art can be integrated into their care by using basic art materials and three art techniques, photography, doll making, and collage. The health care worker can readily engage children and the artwork provides a springboard for discussion. The article provides a chart with age appropriate materials and applications. Leeuwenburgh also discusses the use of the three art techniques and how they can help children explore feelings and understanding of medical issues. In addition, she includes recommendations for what materials should be purchase. This article is helpful in that it provides specific activities divided into age appropriate groups. She is in agreement with Dunn-Snow and D’Amelia in that she emphasizes the importance of the process rather than the quality of the artwork. The article would benefit anyone working with children in the health care or art in medicine profession.
The University of Texas MD Anderson Children’s Art Project. (2014) Retrieved April 13, 2014, from http://www.childrensart.org/home.php.
MD Anderson Children's Art Program (CAP) started with a volunteer’s desire to use a child’s artwork to create a Christmas card and today brings in a gross income between five to six million dollars a year. The website is to inform the public about the program, to recruit volunteers and donors, and to advertise and sell merchandise. It contains valuable information for creating a program proposal. Included is a project overview for 2013 that provides a summary of income, sales, cost, etc. There is a press release kit that offers an overview of the program, as well as marketing and development ideas. The CAP merchandize shop gives examples of items that can eventually be manufactured and sold through Art at Molly’s House. The article by Fitzgerald coincides with the information on the CAP website. Both are in agreement that CAP illustrates a program that is not only successful in using art to benefit children struggling with disease but also invests in research and care for children with cancer. This website is useful for anyone interested in this program or studying a program for arts in medicine.
Wexler, Alice. (2002). Painting their way out: profiles of adolescent art practice at the Harlem Hospital Horizon Art Studio. Studies in Art Education, 43(4), 339-353.
Wexler is a professor for the School of Fine & Performing Arts at New Paltz State University of New York. She has done extensive research on the art making practices of exceptional children and adults and is currently working on a book based on children with special needs in alternative settings. She has received awards for her research and artwork. In this article Wexler describes her research conducted at the Harlem Horizon Art Studio (HHAS). She believes that the children involved with the program independently participate in their own healing process and describes HHAS as a bridge connecting art therapy and art education. HHAS began with Bill Richards, who started the venture through private funding. He is not trained as an art therapist and does not consider himself a teacher, but rather a mentor to the students. He believes the studio must possess a safe, serious, and professional atmosphere, thus preventing children from acting out destructive behavior. He begins children with watercolors, encouraging them to paint from their imaginations, eventually moving on to acrylics on canvas. Richards believes this develops confidence and requires decision-making and choice. He believes when children make art in this way a dynamic change occurs in their personalities, health, and attitudes. They can work through their problems with paint and dialogue. This article provides insight and a different approach to art education. It is recommended to anyone researching the arts in medicine.
[1] The description for the web links is retrieved from http://www.arts.ufl.edu/cam/other_weblinks.aspx
[2] Hunte, R. (2009). Children’s Art Project: Children’s Cancer Hospital Child Life. Retreieved from http://www.youtube.com/watchv=jsf3CGqrulQ
[3] This statement is retrieved from http://www.thefundforhhc.org/Arts_and_Healing.html
April 15, 2014
Annotated Bibliography Project
Field of Inquiry – Art Programs for Children Struggling with disease
Arts in Medicine. (2010). Rural Communites Toolkit. Retrieved April 5, 2014, from http://www.arts.ufl.edu/cam/programDev_planDev.aspx
The "Rural Communities Toolkit" is a program development resource for people interested in creating an arts in healthcare program for rural communities. It is offered through the University of Florida Arts in Medicine and the College of Fine Arts. The toolkit provides an easy to understand, step-by-step program that includes development resources, program model resources, and web links. The first section, development resources, provides information on assessing the need for an arts in healthcare program through community resource mapping. Once a need is established, the next section, program model resources, offers links to program models that are successfully operating in Florida. Some of the models provide art programs for patients struggling with disease, others promote community wellness, and several incorporate both. The final section, web links, contains links to numerous websites that “provide resources for the development of arts in healthcare programs and projects”.[1] This website provides essential data on researching and developing an arts in healthcare program in a rural setting and would be excellent for anyone interested in this. It provides necessary steps to establish a need, examples that are effective, and resources for success. It is in agreement with Fitzgerald and Caruso in that an arts based program can help the physical, mental, and emotional well being of patients and it enhances the quality of care provided by the healthcare institution.
Caruso, I. (2009). Art’s Healing Powers. Saturday Evening Post, 281, 70-73.
Caruso is an author based out of New York. He has written books and articles for The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Saturday Evening Post, Washington Post, and the History Channel Magazine, and more. This informative article is written for the Saturday Evening Post and covers what Caruso believes to be indisputable growing evidence of art’s therapeutic benefits. Caruso is not promoting a specific program but presenting research from a collection of different programs. It provides positive input for the benefits of art for patients of various diseases. Caruso includes information to support his belief in the benefits of art for patients from: an art program that works with patients through Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota; a free monthly program for Alzheimer’s patients through Museum of Modern Art in New York; art workshops offered at Hewlett House, a cancer-support resource center on Long Island; the University of Michigan Health System’s Art Cart program; and from the art therapist of Levindale Hebrew Geriatric Center in Baltimore. Some of Caruso’s claims include: art helps ailing children gain some control over their helplessness; art reduces pain in cancer patients; art results in improvement in pain and significant improvement in mood and anxiety reduction; art allows suppressed emotions to surface; art stimulates our neurology; art counteracts feelings of helplessness; art is a vehicle to communicate emotions that children may not be able to articulate; and finally, art has helped as much as any medication. Caruso’s findings follow the beliefs of Fitzgerald. This article would benefit anyone interested in the therapeutic benefits of art.
Cleveland, W. (2010). Arts-based Community Development: Mapping the Terrain. Retrieved March 3, 2014 from http://animatingdemocracy.org/resource/arts-based-community-development-mapping-terrain.
Cleveland is an author, activist, teacher, lecturer, and director of the Center for the Study of Art and Community. In this article he describes his understanding of the changes and the growth that has occurred within the arts-based community development. In addition, he describes and discusses mapping the arts-based development within communities by dividing the area into four categories, build and improve, educate and inform, inspire and mobilize, and nurture and heal. This allows examination and investigation as to what is working effectively and what needs change. He continues with insight gained from research as to what he believes works and what he believes does not work for development. Local ownership and strong relationships are two things he considers essential. Along with that, he feels clear communication is crucial and effective training is necessary. This article specifies basic research and assessment that needs to take place within an area before any other steps are taken to create a new art program. It is a recommended read for anyone desiring to start an art based business.
Dunn-Snow, P., D’Amelia, G. (2000). How Art Teachers Can Enhance Artmaking as a Therapeutic Experience: Art Therapy and Art Education. Art education 53(3), 46-53.
Dunn-Snow is an art teacher, art therapist, currently working as the Director of the Graduate Art Therapy Program at Barry University in Miami Shores, Florida. D’Amelio is also an art teacher, art therapist, working at Wakeland Elementary School in Bradenton, Florida. This article discusses ways an art teacher can enhance the therapeutic aspects of their lessons. First, the art teacher can recognize that art is a creative process that moves through different stages. By helping students work through the creative process the art teacher can assist them in reorganizing thoughts and beliefs and develop critical thinking skills. Second, art teachers can empathetically talk with students about their artwork, helping them to express their thoughts and feelings. Third, the art teacher should recognize that various art media could evoke different emotions. Decisions such as fluid versus resistive, simple verses complex, and structured verses unstructured need to be made based on the students. Finally, the art teacher needs to communicate with other people involved in the student’s life because often times, graphic expressions speak louder than words. This article emphasizes the importance of the process rather than the quality of the artwork. It is beneficial because it demonstrates the power of art to transform the student’s life. It unwraps teaching strategies to help students develop emotionally while they create artwork. A good read for any art teacher.
Fitzgerald, W. (2011). Signs of Hope: Children’s Art Project. In Conquest Fall 2011 ed online. Retrieved from http://www.mdanderson.org/publications/conquest/issues/2011-fall/children-s-art-project.html#.
This article is from Conquest, a quarterly publication by the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. In it, Fitzgerald talks about the Children’s Art Program (CAP) at the Center. The thirty-nine year old program, made possible with assistance from volunteers and art instructors, is for children diagnosed with cancer. It provides the opportunity for these children to work alongside each other, building a bond between them. As the children create art, they support, inspire, and encourage one another. The author shares personal testimonies from children and parents who have benefitted from the program. He goes on to tell of participants who eventually return to volunteer at the center. “During treatment so much is out of the patient’s control, but the time spent creating artwork allows each child to feel empowered,” says Shannan Murray, CAP’s executive director. “It’s a creative outlet that provides a way to look beyond the disease, and this offers the patient hope.” This is in agreement with Caruso. Although the author is writing the article to promote MD Anderson Cancer Center, Child Life Specialist, Renee Hunte[2], is in agreement with Fitzgerald. She believes that programs like CAP benefit children being treated for cancer by helping them look beyond the disease. CAP is a testimony to the benefits of an art program for children struggling with disease. Any organization or person interested in starting an art program for children struggling from disease would benefit from reading this article.
Green, J., & Kindseth, A. (2011). Art all day: Distinction and interrelation of school based and out-of-school arts learning. Studies in Art Education, 52(4), 337-341.
In this article, authors Green and Kindseth discuss the Manchester Craftsmen’s Guild (MCG) after-school Apprenticeship Training Program (ATP). They begin the article by saying “Quality arts learning can be a vehicle for personal transformation” (p 337). The authors believe that MCG is an example of this as their students exhibit a sense of self, and a passion for learning. They go on to explain that this organization was started from the dream of one man, Bill Strickland. As a teenager, his high school art teacher, Frank Ross, encouraged and mentored him. It was his desire to offer the same opportunity to others, so in 1968, he founded MCG. Today this program is nationally recognized and used as a model for others to follow. Like others, Strickland believes the environment must be safe and must promote healthy relationship among adults and peers. He promotes and teaches leadership skills and provides students with opportunities to grow and learn. This article encourages and inspires one to follow their dream. It is an excellent read for anyone.
HHC Art. (2014). Retrieved March 9, 2014, from http://www.nychhcart.org/index.html#.
The Harlem Horizon Art Studio at Harlem Hospital Center (HHC) in New York started in 1989 and has been operating for over 20 years. This program offers an art studio where pediatric inpatients suffering trauma, as well as outpatients and community members of all ages, can express themselves through creating art. The sessions average fifteen to twenty participants. The participants do not receive formal training; rather they are encouraged to develop their own personal artistic styles through drawing and painting freely. Patients' work is displayed in the hospital and at galleries throughout the northeast. HHC states that “evidence indicates that participation in or exposure to the arts reduces pain, improves quality of life, and helps caregivers too.”[3] This is in agreement with CAP, Caruso, and Fitzgerald. An example they share is the story of Abraham Daniel. At the age of nine he suffered a broken spine and was in a coma for over a month. Daniel was one of the first patients to create art at the HHC Art studio and today is still part of the studio, working with other victims of trauma. This website points to the success of an art program for patients.
Johnson, E. R. (2009). Emily R. Johnson Artist and Art Therapist in Louisville, KY. Segment from Insight Communications Villionaire. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TsTgQG2wvz8.
Emily R. Johnson is an artist and expressive art therapist with Norton Cancer Institute at Kosair Children's Hospital. She graduated with a degree in studio art. After working for two years in a children’s hospital as an art instructor, she went to graduate school and received her MA in Expressive Art Therapy. This video is an informative piece on Johnson. It features her work as an art therapist and her personal artwork. It is very informative and gives insight and direction into art projects that help children with cancer. In this video, Johnson shares that a lot of the children she works with are really scared and really angry. Artwork is a way for them to talk about their feelings safely. It’s a way to express what they are feeling when they may not have the language to do so. She explains that sometimes the children do not even know how they are feeling and those feelings come out through their artwork. She states, “Artwork provides children that do not have any control over their lives, to have an area that they do have control over.” This goes along with what Shannan Murray, CAP’s executive director said. Johnson is also in agreement with the Lombardi Cancer Center at Georgetown University Hospital, in that she believes it is also important to include art projects for family members. This video provides insight for anyone working with children struggling with cancer.
Kim, J. B., Kirchhoff, M. & Whitsett, S. (2011). Expressive arts group therapy with middle-school aged children from military families. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 38(5), 356-362.
This article written by Kim and Kirchhoff, Licensed Clinical Social Workers and Whitsett, PhD describes eight expressive arts group therapy sessions made up of middle school students from active military families. Like Dunn-Snow, D’Amelia, and Leeuwenburgh, they emphasize the importance of the process rather than the product. They believe the selection of quality art materials and supplies are essential and that the materials should be “low skill/high sensitivity” so the participant can concentrate on process rather than manipulating the material. The artistic product is used to increase self-expression and to deepen self-awareness. They believe another important element is to provide an age-appropriate, safe, and supportive environment. This follows Richards’ (HHAS) and Strickland’s (MCG) beliefs that the environment must feel safe. Within group settings, the authors believe it is important to present activities that encourage relatedness between the participants. In one activity participants were asked to draw their first names using a variety of art materials. In another, participants constructed a group sculpture. First they created drawings and then they placed them in an arrangement that showed how they related to each other’s issues. At the last session, they used air-dry clay to create visual images reflecting their feelings about the ending of the group. This article had excellent suggestions for activities and stressed the importance of age appropriate activities and open communication. It would benefit anyone interested in starting a support group for middle school students.
Leeuwenburgh, E. (2000). Children, Art, and Home Health Care: the Universal Language. Home Health Care Manage Practice 12(5), 40-45.
Leeuwenburgh is a licensed professional counselor and wrote this article for people within the health care profession that work with children. In the article she explains that people are born with an innate desire to create, therefore health care professionals should engage children and elicit their perspectives and experiences with art. She states that art therapy is “ currently considered a ‘Complimentary Medicine’ with elements necessary to produce healing” (p 41) therefore, art should be used as an option for communication with children. She describes how art can be integrated into their care by using basic art materials and three art techniques, photography, doll making, and collage. The health care worker can readily engage children and the artwork provides a springboard for discussion. The article provides a chart with age appropriate materials and applications. Leeuwenburgh also discusses the use of the three art techniques and how they can help children explore feelings and understanding of medical issues. In addition, she includes recommendations for what materials should be purchase. This article is helpful in that it provides specific activities divided into age appropriate groups. She is in agreement with Dunn-Snow and D’Amelia in that she emphasizes the importance of the process rather than the quality of the artwork. The article would benefit anyone working with children in the health care or art in medicine profession.
The University of Texas MD Anderson Children’s Art Project. (2014) Retrieved April 13, 2014, from http://www.childrensart.org/home.php.
MD Anderson Children's Art Program (CAP) started with a volunteer’s desire to use a child’s artwork to create a Christmas card and today brings in a gross income between five to six million dollars a year. The website is to inform the public about the program, to recruit volunteers and donors, and to advertise and sell merchandise. It contains valuable information for creating a program proposal. Included is a project overview for 2013 that provides a summary of income, sales, cost, etc. There is a press release kit that offers an overview of the program, as well as marketing and development ideas. The CAP merchandize shop gives examples of items that can eventually be manufactured and sold through Art at Molly’s House. The article by Fitzgerald coincides with the information on the CAP website. Both are in agreement that CAP illustrates a program that is not only successful in using art to benefit children struggling with disease but also invests in research and care for children with cancer. This website is useful for anyone interested in this program or studying a program for arts in medicine.
Wexler, Alice. (2002). Painting their way out: profiles of adolescent art practice at the Harlem Hospital Horizon Art Studio. Studies in Art Education, 43(4), 339-353.
Wexler is a professor for the School of Fine & Performing Arts at New Paltz State University of New York. She has done extensive research on the art making practices of exceptional children and adults and is currently working on a book based on children with special needs in alternative settings. She has received awards for her research and artwork. In this article Wexler describes her research conducted at the Harlem Horizon Art Studio (HHAS). She believes that the children involved with the program independently participate in their own healing process and describes HHAS as a bridge connecting art therapy and art education. HHAS began with Bill Richards, who started the venture through private funding. He is not trained as an art therapist and does not consider himself a teacher, but rather a mentor to the students. He believes the studio must possess a safe, serious, and professional atmosphere, thus preventing children from acting out destructive behavior. He begins children with watercolors, encouraging them to paint from their imaginations, eventually moving on to acrylics on canvas. Richards believes this develops confidence and requires decision-making and choice. He believes when children make art in this way a dynamic change occurs in their personalities, health, and attitudes. They can work through their problems with paint and dialogue. This article provides insight and a different approach to art education. It is recommended to anyone researching the arts in medicine.
[1] The description for the web links is retrieved from http://www.arts.ufl.edu/cam/other_weblinks.aspx
[2] Hunte, R. (2009). Children’s Art Project: Children’s Cancer Hospital Child Life. Retreieved from http://www.youtube.com/watchv=jsf3CGqrulQ
[3] This statement is retrieved from http://www.thefundforhhc.org/Arts_and_Healing.html