New Tradition is Established as Mental Health Professionals Come Together for Similar Cause
Last month, we met a milestone as ITA held its Second Annual Integrated Creative Arts Therapy Conference, “Building Connections Creatively.” The weekend of June 2nd marked the first founding anniversary of our gathering of mental health professionals to discuss research and developments within the fields of Creative Arts Therapies. Thus, a new tradition was born.
More than 90 attendees convened at Adler University in downtown Chicago for 20 panels, workshops and presentations, which examined a diverse range of topics ranging from ethics and boundaries within creative arts therapies to the future presence of arts in health professions. The “Scope and Breadth of the Therapeutic Arts” panel, which featured representatives from the Center for Creative Arts Therapy, the Chicago School of Professional Psychology, Columbia College Chicago, ITA, and Snow City Arts, was particularly devoted to the aforementioned subject matter.
Bryan Lindskog, MT-BC, and Maia Wheeler, MAAT, LCPC, ATR, pose in front of the opening slide for their conference presentation. Lindskog and Wheeler were among many presenters to attend “Building Connections Creatively”.
Dr. Marni Rosen, ITA’s Practice Manager, Art Therapist, and Clinical Psychologist, was instrumental in coordinating the conference and piloting it to success. During the event, she explained why singular recognition for and conversion about the creative arts therapies is so vital.
“It’s important for creative arts therapists to have a meeting place to talk about their work, research and creative interventions in a forum that is supportive of their work and to create dialogue across modalities,” said Dr. Rosen. “This conference also affords non-creative arts therapy practitioners an opportunity to connect and learn about creative arts therapies. [It] provides a much-needed venue for information exchange and connection building.”
Dimicelli-Mitran plays the guitar for her audience as part her presentation, “Creating Conscious Connection: The Healing Potential of Music and the Arts.”
The conference also featured a presentation from Louise Dimiceli-Mitran, Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor, Music Therapist and Fellow of the Association for Music and Imagery. Via “Creating Conscious Connection: The Healing Potential of Music and the Arts,” Dimiceli-Mitran highlighted theme issues found within mental health professions and the unique capacities the creative arts therapies have to address them.
“It’s our job to remind [clients] that there are other parts to them, outside of their diagnosis,” said Dimiceli-Mitran. “Creative arts therapies … offer concrete images to represent the insights, learning and potential for change.”
Continuing with the tradition, ITA’s 3rd Annual Integrated Creative Arts Therapy Conference, “Cultivating Identity Creatively” will be held June 8 – 9, 2018. ITA hopes to see you there, where the focus will center on the formation and sustainability of the identities of self, community, culture, and society.
For more information, please visit www.itachicago.org/conference.