Art Therapy

Art therapy, based on the idea that creative acts can be healing, is a form of psychotherapy that uses art as its primary form of treatment. Through creating art and contemplating the art making process, a qualified Art Therapist can help clients of all ages to express emotions in a healthy way, cope with stress and traumatic experiences and to increase their self-awareness. Art therapy requires no previous art experience and can benefit individuals with mental health problems, learning disabilities, neurological conditions, or physical disabilities.

Local experts in Art Therapy

Dani Dierking (She/Her/Hers)

Licensed Art Therapist

LAT, LPC, ATR

I am a licensed art therapist with the State of Oregon and I am a registered art therapist with the American Art Therapy Credentials Board. I have been practicing art therapy for over 8 years.

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Ashley Murtagh (she/her, they/them)

Licensed Professional Counselor

LPC, LPCC, ATR-BC

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Elizabeth Nelson (She/Her)

Art Therapist

ATR-BC/LPC

I completed a masters degree in Art Therapy Counseling from Marylhurst University in 2006 and have obtained board certification as an art therapist with the national Art Therapy Credentials Board.

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Emily Ross-Johnson (she/her/hers)

Professional Counselor Associate

Art therapy is an extremely helpful tool for those wishing to decrease stress, anxiety and depression, while increasing cognitive function, emotional resilience, insight, and social skills. Plus, it's fun!

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Alyssa Gursky (they/them & she/her)

Licensed Professional Counselor

MA, LPC

Benefits of art therapy may include the development of non-verbal forms of self-expression, trauma resolution, increased self-esteem, and nervous system regulation/stress management. Art materials can be used in the session, or, prompts can be given to complete outside of the therapy space. I hold the belief that art is like a dream, or a snapshot of some facet of the psyche, latent with imagery, waiting to be de-coded and integrated into one’s daily life.

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Rachael Patoray (she/her)

Licensed Professional Counselor

LPC, ATR

My professional training is in art therapy and I am a registered art therapist (ATR). Art therapy is about creating art in a therapeutic setting. The act of art making, as well as the art piece you create, will help you to explore and express yourself in a safe space. Creativity helps you tap-into and explore complex and overwhelming feelings and situations in a non-threatening way.

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Lesley Burke (she/her)

Licensed Professional Counselor

LPC, ATR

I am a registered art therapist (ATR) and enjoy helping clients engage with their own creative energy to facilitate healing. This may look very different depending on the individual, but can include painting, drawing, collage-making, art journaling, photography, sewing, or sculpture/ mixed media. I generally use the “art as therapy” approach which means that the art-making process itself is heal

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Rainer Rivenburgh (they/them)

Licensed Professional Counselor

MAAT, ATR-BC, ATCS, LAT, LPC, SEP

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Erica Ochsenreither (she/her)

Licensed Professional Counselor

PhD, LPC, ATR-BC, LCAT

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Family Roots Therapy

Licensed Professional Counselor

Our Licensed Art Therapist has experience in using art therapy to help teens explore their emotions, build self-esteem, and heal.

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Sarah Hardin

Licensed Marriage Family Therapist

Sometimes, words don't suffice. Or we tell ourselves the same stories over and over again, not allowing us to get unstuck from these old narratives. The power of image and of creative expression to get at the heart of a feeling or a problem is immense. If you think visually or are curious about new ways of approaching old problems, art therapy may be very effective for you.

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Celine Redfield

Licensed Marriage Family Therapist

MA, LMFT, Certified Havening Practitioner, EFT Master, Practitioner

I use art therapy to help clients to externalize their problems so that they can have different perspective on them and to use the right side of the brain instead of the left. Through use of the art clients gai insights into their bodies and the unconscious process that occurs within them.

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Drew Smith (she/her)

Licensed Art Therapist

LCAT, LPC

I'm a Licensed Certified Art Therapist with five years of experience providing individual and group therapy to children, teens, and adults. Prior to completing my Master's Degree in Art Therapy I worked in community arts centers, museums, and classrooms facilitating arts programming in numerous settings and for people of all ages.

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Emily Lichtenberg (They/them)

Student Counselor

Art therapy is both process- and product-focused. I lead clients through process-oriented approaches to explore how what we are working through can be expressed by the metaphors within the creative process itself. I am currently in my final (internship) year of my graduate art therapy program. I have earned specialized training in a variety of art therapy forms. I lean toward experiential approaches, focusing on what makes sense for the ‘here-and-now.’

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Danielle Meyer (she/her)

Licensed Professional Counselor

PhD, LPC/LMHC, ATR

I provide art therapy via telehealth and like to make art in session or provide clients with prompts to explore creatively in and outside of session. I encourage clients to keep a journal of some kind for writing, art, dreams, or notes in session.

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Beth Ann AKA BA (bee-ay) Short LCAT, ATR-BC (they/them)

Art Therapist

LCAT

Art therapy requires specialized training and certification. Art therapy is a human service profession that serves to increase self-awareness, self-esteem, improve social skills and behavior, increase the ability to problem solve, decrease stress, improve reality orientation and resolve emotional conflicts through the process of making art. In OR there are two art therapy licenses: Licensed Art Therapist and Licensed Certified Art Therapist. Nationally art therapists are ATR or ATR-BC.

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Amanda Melbostad (she/they)

Student Counselor

200 RYT, MA Art Therapy Student Intern

I have been a creative and artist the majority of my life with 2 previous art degrees, I am now acquiring my MA in Art Therapy at Lewis & Clark.

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Alicia Pasik (She/They)

Licensed Professional Counselor

LPC

My undergraduate degree coursework at Lesley College focused largely on art and expressive arts therapy.

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Erin Webb

Licensed Art Therapist

LPC, ATR

Making art reduces stress and helps many teens engage more in therapy. Art therapy helps youth process difficult experiences and communicate feelings, thoughts and memories that are hard to express in words. Art therapy is also used during family therapy to support positive interactions and the sharing and revising of family stories. Artistic talent is not necessary and stick figures are welcome!

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Aaron Finbloom (he/him)

Somatic Practitioner

PhD

I work with Psychodrama and Visioning practices, which help bring a client into dramatic or imaginative representation of inner and external roles. These practices help significantly aid in expression, depth-work and distancing.

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Nicole Craig (She/her)

Licensed Professional Counselor

MA, LPC

As an art therapist, I believe we are all artists who deserve the pleasure of art making. I have used this modality in a variety of ways; helping people process grief and trauma externally, as a means to improve reality testing for individuals with psychosis, as a tool for depression and anxiety, and as a method to increase insight.

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Allison Medford (she/her)

Licensed Marriage Family Therapist

MA, LMFT, ATR

Though many therapists will say they use "art therapy" in their treatment, it takes specialized training to call oneself an Art Therapist and register with the ATCB. This distinction identifies me as uniquely qualified to use art making and creative interventions with advanced knowledge of the creative process, evidence based interventions, and honor for your expressive voice in your journey to self discovery and growth. Master's Degree in Art Therapy, GWU 2010 ATR #22-230

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