In Gestalt therapy, we consider any type of interaction between the self and the environment to be a creative act. This view of creativity actually lends itself well to addressing what is commonly referred to as “writer’s block,” which plagues all types of creative people, from writers to musicians to painters to dancers (but also programmers, engineers, and many people whom we don’t bless with the label “creative”). When making art, an artist is engaged in a number of interactions with the objects in her environment, but often is not interacting with other humans. In these solitary moments of creation, feedback comes from one’s own senses, while judgments are being generated by one’s own personality. What if your personality is, at times, unkind, or unreliable? How does that affect, or even interrupt, your engagement with your medium?
Art is an interaction with oneself and the world, of sharing one’s unique perspective. It can be useful to explore your habits of seeing and your responses to being seen (both by others and by yourself). Which aspects of seeing and being seen excite you and which trigger your anxiety or cause you to shut down? Translating an inner experience into an artistic expression that’s perceivable to others generally leads to exposure, to vulnerability, and to possible contact with others. If you have limited or unpracticed tolerance for exposure, for vulnerability, for close, personal contact, it’s common to come up with self-inhibiting ways of feeling safe, like nagging yourself with perfectionism, or procrastinating, or completely numbing out. But the creative spark remains, only now it’s frustrated.
One of the most effective ways of working with creative inhibitions and blocks is to engage with other artists and receive a wider range of feedback than the voices in your own head. This is why I like to facilitate group therapy for artists who are looking for a safe environment where they can become more aware of their internal monologues and take in alternative views of themselves, their art, and the world. Engaging in small, interpersonal experiments of exposure, vulnerability, protection, and intimacy, each person can learn more about their common interruptions, as well as find more connection to their creative spirit and unique needs for expression.
To find out more about participating in a group for artists, send an email to kitsoleil@gmail.com.
Katheryn Soleil, LP 