The Science Behind Art Therapy: Why Creating Art Heals
Last week, we explored how art becomes medicine through our embodied experience. Today, we'll delve into the fascinating neuroscience that helps explain why art therapy can be so effective, drawing from both foundational and current research in the field.
The Creative Brain
As a Registered Art Therapist, I've long observed how art-making can profoundly impact a person's healing journey. For years, art therapists have recognized that creative expression allows people to reframe experiences, reorganize thoughts, and gain personal insights that enhance the quality of life (Konopka, 2014). Now, recent neuroscience research helps us understand these transformations at a biological level, showing how art-making directly engages visual and tactile sensory inputs that integrate with emotion, memory, and cognition (Strang, 2024).
Understanding Neuroplasticity
One of the most exciting areas of research involves neuroplasticity - our brain's ability to adapt and change in response to experience. As Konopka (2014) noted, imaging data shows that with proper engagement, the brain can rewire and recover function. Building on this understanding, recent studies suggest that creativity is associated with changes in functional connectivity and the expression of genes linked to synaptic plasticity (Strang, 2024).
References
Konopka LM. Where art meets neuroscience: a new horizon of art therapy. Croat Med J. 2014 Feb;55(1):73-4. doi: 10.3325/cmj.2014.55.73. PMID: 24577830; PMCID: PMC3944420.
Strang, C. (2024). Art therapy and neuroscience: Evidence, limits, and myths. Frontiers in Psychology, 15. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1484481
