Continuing onward: Witnessing the cycle of the seasons pass with gratitude, acceptance, and letting go.
Nourishing what remains: Rebuilding our community and connection with others in the wake of adversity.

Amanda Gee (Lower Sackville, NS)

Spring has sprung, and summer is on the horizon. This time of year, growth is everywhere – in the leaves appearing, the sprouts pushing up, the birds nesting, and baby animals being born.

Sarah Gysin (Ottawa, ON)

This issue tells stories about searching for identity, transformation and adaptation, and the value of connection in the face of trauma and loss. Connection to ourselves, our loved ones, to our clients and to each other, brings forth the strength to keep moving.

Featuring artwork by Afsaneh Shafai (Toronto, ON), Dillon Lewchuk (Victoria, BC), Sarvatmika Rajeev (Chennai, India), and Uneeba Mubashsher (Waterloo, ON).

Dianne Shannon (Saskatoon, SK)

Envisage reviewer Dianne Shannon provides a comprehensive and thoughtful review of art therapist Cornelia Elbrecht’s newest book, Healing Trauma in Children with Clay Field Therapy: How Sensorimotor Art Therapy Supports the Embodiment of Developmental Milestones.

Art Therapy Conversations
Rebecca Montgomery (Vancouver, BC)

Cornelia Elbrecht is an art therapist, author and educator, and the founder and director of the Institute for Sensorimotor Art Therapy. She has recently come out with her fourth book, “Healing Trauma in Children with Clay Field Therapy” which dives into how working with clay can be a valuable tool for reparation and somatic-based trauma healing.

Richa Mehta (Abu Dhabi, UAE)

These questions bewildered me to the point that I started asking myself, who am I? How do I live with the anxiety and discomfort of my identity constantly being questioned by society? How do I challenge the notion of who I am supposed to be? These questions are the core of my continuous journey to finding myself.

Taylor Bourassa (Ottawa, ON)

Being able to relate to clients through media that is meaningful to them not only strengthens the therapeutic bond, but I believe it provides a mirror through which to recognize the influence of said media in a client’s life. By creating a space in therapy where all parts of the self are honoured and welcomed, the client is given the opportunity to look at their interests in different ways and see how significant they truly are.

Emmanuelle Cesari & Camille Barberi (France)

La prédominance de l’image dans notre société est un fait acquis. Élément ontologique lié à l’essence même de l’être, l’image est aussi un des outils de l’art-thérapeute, au sens de l’Imaginaire. Au vu de la progression de l’utilisation des technologies, nous nous trouvons à étudier l’évolution du rapport à nous-mêmes et à notre image dans la thérapie à distance.

Featuring poetry and artwork by Heather Frayne (Edmonton, AB) and Tiffany Chinapen (Toronto, ON).

Debbie Theriault (Moncton, NB)

When speaking with their coordinator I learned that the women had accessed art therapy in the past, and the therapist who was facilitating had moved away. We agreed that I would provide art therapy every Thursday for four weeks.

Nature’s Way
Taylor Bourassa (Ottawa, ON)

Nature’s Way is a regular column in Envisage that explores eco-art therapy and invites practices of enhancing our relationship with the earth. In this issue, Envisage writer Taylor Bourassa explores ways of respectfully processing and discarding old artwork that do not negatively impact our environment.

Li June Han (Singapore)

We wish for better closure, or that we had done more, and if only we had said proper goodbyes. The following prose and artwork are from my journey seeking closure to the separations that have made deep imprints in my life.