This module, rooted in art therapy theory and Neimeyer’s Meaning Reconstruction theory, introduces the use of self-portraiture with grieving clients.  After a significant loss, the grievers often experience an altered sense of self and the world, and need to reconstruct a cohesive life narrative that is inclusive of their pre-loss and post-loss identities.  The creation of a self portrait can be transformational for grieving clients, allowing them to explore their shifted sense of self and engage in the meaning making process.  Art therapy case studies of a child, adolescent, and adult will be presented.  Visually rich and deeply personal creations will highlight the expansive and varied potential therapeutic benefits of self-portraiture in the grieving process, which can include validation of non-death losses that are secondary to bereavement.  This module will additionally explore examples in art history of artists who utilized self-portraiture to process losses, and review the usage of self-portraits across clinical disciplines to assess a client’s self-image and further treatment.  An experiential component, with no artistic skill required, will allow learners to engage as they choose to creatively explore aspects of the self.

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LEARNING OBJECTIVES

• Summarize the potential repercussions of a significant loss upon the identity of the grieving client;

• Identify three unique functions of self-portraiture that foster therapeutic growth and processing;

• Discuss the ways that self-portraits may be used to create a cohesive self narrative as a central process of meaning reconstruction; and

• Describe self-portraiture for the grievers to foster the tenets of meaning reconstruction, including bracing, pacing, and facing, sense making, and benefit finding.

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Note:  Completion of this program and return of the Responsive Journal satisfies 1 Case Study required for Certification in Grief Therapy as Meaning Reconstruction, Certification in Art-Assisted Grief Therapy or Certification in Grief Therapy for Non-Death Losses.

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PROGRAM CONTENT

This program contains the following video segments:

1. Grief and the Shifted Self:  A Case Illustration (44 mins)

2. On Kollwitz and Kahlo:  Historical Self-Portraits of Loss (46 mins)

3. Case Conceptualization:  Processing the Portrait (50 mins)

4. Our Methods, Ourselves:  Creating and Sharing Self-Portraits (35 mins)

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COURSE PACK CONTAINS...

• A PDF copy of the presentation slides;

• A list of suggested art materials, and detailed instructions for engaging in the process of creating an image of self;

• Guidelines for orienting clients to self-portraiture, and question prompts for processing the process and product after the creative experience; and

• The Responsive Journal that, upon completion and return, confers 1 Case Study required for Certification in Grief Therapy as Meaning Reconstruction, Certification in Art-Assisted Grief Therapy or Certification in Grief Therapy for Non-Death Losses.

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ART SUPPLIES NEEDED​​