More than Art
Art as therapy has been used clinically since the late 1800s, and studies over the past few decades have shown there is an inherent healing component that is unique to art. A 2010 study of the literature supporting the connection between art, healing and public health was published by the National Center for Biotechnology Information. Another in 2016, published by Taylor & Francis Online, found that participation in art produced lower levels of the hormone cortisol, which helps the body respond to stress.
For educators working with high-need students, the process of making art is an essential tool to utilize with their youth.
Elizabeth (Liz) Rivera, a 14-year old Lackawanna student enrolled at Erie 1 BOCES Northtowns Academy, excels at visual, written and musical expressions of art.
“I like art class because I get to be creative,” Liz said. “It makes me feel focused. I love all creative classes equally.”
For Liz’s art instructor, Lisa Garvey, she’s confident her background in art therapy has benefited her and her students over the past 27 years.
“When compared to other school subjects, the inherent healing component is unique to art,” Garvey said.
Special and Alternative Education programs at Erie 1 BOCES, recognize the value art-making provides to students in their high-need populations. Garvey, who supports four unique programs with different populations, modifies her lessons to meet the students where they are physically, socially and emotionally.
New York State regulations now recognize students’ interest in the arts as a pathway to graduation. In 2018, Erie 1 BOCES opened the EDGE Academy to provide a full-day academic program for Regents diploma-bound students who need an alternative to the traditional high school setting in order to thrive. EDGE students explore a series of five curriculum pathways, three of those pathways are artistic in nature.
“It is a respite space, they can put things in their lives on hold and engage in imagery that they’ve chosen,” said Nancy Amico, art instructor at EDGE. “Their art is a reflective and telling expression of where they are, but in a non-threating way.”
Students like Alex Paplow, an 18-year-old EDGE student from Amherst, shared how taking an art class provides them a sense of calm nearly every day.
Summer Oliver, a 17-year-old EDGE student from Lancaster, said, “Sometimes I come to school in a bad place, but after art class I can get myself functioning.”
According to Amico their shared art-making space has also strengthened their school community.
“They’ll freely speak to each other while their hands are busy,” Amico continued. “I’ve been humbled by their conversations. That in and of itself has been therapeutic.”