Toward a cognitive theory of art therapy

If we accept the premises of this paper that imagerry, visual thinking, and creativity are all important facets of cognition then it seems reasonable to believe that art is one way in which these cognitive abilities can be activated and be used in therapy. Art can be, especially for “high visualizers,” an effective vehicle for problem solving. “The effort to visualize and thereby to define the powers which the patient vaguely faces and to discover the correct relations between them means more than rendering observations on paper. It means to work out the problem by making it potrayable“ (Arnheim, 1969, p. 262). The art experience activities all four modes of cognition discussed in this paper thus expanding and increasing the possibilities available in daily living. Working out a problem through art involves many of the cognitive operations known. “The completion of a picture is also the solution of a thought problem, although there may be no words to tell about the finding” (Anheim, 1969, p. 120).