According to a Straits Times story, over 1,500 students graduated from Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts and LaSalle College of the Arts in May. These graduates completed a variety of degrees, including art therapy. As part of their graduation year, the students held showcases highlighting their best work.
Art Projects with a Purpose
One of the graduates specifically focused on how art can help individuals with poor mental health in Singapore. Another project focused on art as a means of self-expression and emotional communication. A third project emphasised the way that artistically designed clothes can empower women.
A New Path
As an older graduate, Ms. Pamela Lie has an interesting story behind her degree. She was working as a sales executive, but felt empty and unrewarded. At age 34, she decided to choose a new career, one that would be more fulfilling and allow her to help others.
At first, she kept the decision a secret from her mother and father, fearing their reaction. However, once she explained to them why she had switched careers and what she hoped to pursue with her art therapy degree, her parents supported her choice. After two years of study, Pamela Lie received her Master’s in Art Therapy, after producing “Down the Rabbit Hole,” her graduate piece.
Down the Rabbit Hole
Ms Lie’s final art piece itself was designed from books, stacked and piled together, forming a deep, dark hole in their centre. The fascinating sculptural work gives a sense of mystery, a feeling of something unknown. Ms. Lie says that it mimics the feeling of diving into the unknown which she senses when she begins sessions with a new patient. “It’s about each relationship as a new journey and getting to know the person behind the disease,” she says.
When Words Fail
For Ms. Lie, art therapy is an ideal kind of treatment when “words are insufficient in expressing the language of emotions.” She feels that she discovered a new part of herself by undertaking this career change, and she hopes to bring the same sense of freedom and creative meaning to others.
Art Therapy in Singapore
At Adelphi Psych Medicine Clinic, we embrace the power of art to lend insight into emotions and past trauma. Art has helped many of our patients to free themselves from anxiety, fear, and repressed trauma; and we rejoice with them when they are finally able to make a breakthrough and put words to their struggles. Along with art therapy, we provide a number of other therapies, medications, and treatments. Each treatment plan is tailored and personalised for each patient.
The Right Kind of Mental Health Clinic
If you’re nervous about coming to a mental health clinic, rest assured that you will be welcomed and respected at Adelphi Psych Medicine Clinic. Our offices are a safe space, and our patients’ information is kept secure and confidential. With our Singapore psychiatrists, you’ll rest the best available treatment from a team that genuinely cares.
News Feed from Adelphi Psych Medicine Clinic
Source: Straits Times, 15 May 2017
