Joan Stanford featured in Zoe Yudice’s article for The Mendocino Beacon …
Using Art as a tool for healing:
Owner of the Stanford Inn and long-time art therapist, Joan Stanford, has recently published a book, ‘The Art of Play: Ignite Your Imagination to Unlock Insight, Healing, and Joy,’ which details the healing powers of art therapy and her journey of discovering its benefits in her own life.
According to Stanford, the theory behind art therapy is that there is a lot going on in our heads, and our conscious mind is just a small percentage, so by giving somebody something that they have to be physically involved with — painting, drawing, movement — it makes a person present. Because their attention is distracted, she argues, their conscious mind relaxes a little bit, allowing for their unconscious mind to present itself.