Art Therapy with People with Learning Disabilities

Reviews / Votes

'Congratulations to Simon Hackett and Nicki Power and the fine international group of pioneers they have brought together from America, Australia, Canada, China and the UK. Art therapists were at the forefront of the first respectful work with people with ID and this book continues the proud tradition with a 21st century understanding, unpacking politics, stigma, inclusion, ableism, neurodiversity, justice, dignity, self-advocacy. Whilst acknowledging and calling out the external inequalities , the book provides inspiration over the transforming power of art and attachment. This book is relevant for all professionals working with disability.'
Valerie Sinason, PhD, President, Institute of Psychotherapy and Disability

'An important and groundbreaking book which should be essential reading for anyone working with people with learning disabilities. The voices of people with learning disabilities come through loud and clear. This accessible book engages the reader noting not only the challenges faced, but showing how well art therapy engages and empowers marginalised experiences allowing people with learning disabilities to express themselves and communicate in innovative ways. The authors are convincing that this work is able to enact social change by challenging inequalities. In short art therapy is shown to be a disruptive and revolutionary process.'
Professor Jill Maben OBE, Professor of Health Services Research and Nursing and parent to a son with autism and learning disabilities

'As the parent of a son with severe Learning Disabilities, and as a Patient and Public Voice partner with NHSE, I have seen the transformative power of Art Therapy in both children's and adults' hospices and with working on a co-production project with Nicki. I really welcome this new book and its view through an empowering and positive lens.'
Anna Gill OBE, Member of Peoples' Advisory Forum at NHS England & Vice-Chair Cambridgeshire Community Services NHS Trust

'This truly innovative book not only gathers international perspectives on art therapy with people with learning disabilities but also includes their voices and experiences in all its aspects. As such, it is a masterclass on how to conduct genuine co-production, and an inspiration to practitioners in all fields. It is a seminal publication which I will recommend to trainees and qualified art therapists.'

Dr Val Huet, PhD, is a Visiting Professor at the University of Hertfordshire and Ulster University. She served as Chief Executive Officer of the British Association of Art Therapists from 2003 to 2021 and was a board member of the London Arts in Health Forum from 2011 to 2017. Currently, she provides online art therapy groups for people with chronic pain and fibromyalgia at King's College Hospital. As a researcher she collaborates with arts in health organisations, lectures internationally and publishes extensively

'The book moves beyond the often standardised inclusion of a few quotes or images to represent participant or client "voice": it addresses the complexities of how power, relationship, art, expression and meaning making interact within the creation of art therapy involving people with learning disabilities and with autism. Here are careful considerations of difference, divergence and the ways that othering and silencing can be reproduced within the apparently "free" or idealised "expressions" of creativity and art. The chapters explore routes to address how different voices can be facilitated in the face of societal forces that oppress within life outside, and inside, the art therapy space. This includes a rethinking of the relationships between professionals and participants to see how factors such as language, time, identity and role can be worked with differently to develop "voice" and to enable change in research, and in practice, involving people with learning disabilities. The different chapters avoid the trap of essentialising one approach or set of methods and carefully acknowledge how varied contexts and situations enable nuanced opportunities and responses to emerge.'
Phil Jones is Emeritus Professor of Children's Rights and Wellbeing, IOE, UCL's Faculty of Education and Society, Co-Author of 'Child Agency and Voice in Therapy'(with Cedar, Haythorne, Mercieca and Ramsden, Routledge 2020)

'A label of learning disability can impose multiple constrictions for members of society, not only in the realm of interpersonal relationships, but in denying the full human rights we all need. This book shows the power of art therapy to change lives even in these most difficult circumstances. Skilled art therapist practitioner-researchers from around the world show us that building communication through art is key to unlocking psychological and social health. The progressive approaches shown here will be of relevance to both the learning disability field and more widely to all practitioners seeking a credible biopsychosocial model of practice.'
Dr Neil Springham, Chief Therapies Officer Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust, London. Consultant art therapist

'This book offers a sensitive, insightful and very much needed text that makes the multiple uses of art therapy with clients with disabilities accessible to a wide readership. Themes such as justice, agency, advocacy and connections are explored. Unlike other publications, the voices of the clients are at the centre of this book, making this an exemplar text for co-creation that needs to become accessible widely.'
Professor Karkou is the Director of the Research Centre for Arts and Wellbeing at Edge Hill University and an internationally known academic and researcher in the arts and arts psychotherapies with external funding successes of over GBP10 million. She is widely published in peer reviewed journals (over 100), authored/edited/co-edited books (5 in total) and has written numerous chapters. Her latest book is co-edited with Dr Supritha Aithal on Arts Therapies with Persons on the Autism Spectrum

'I have read the proposal for this book, and I really look forward to reading the whole work. It is very exciting to have a new volume highlighting the voices of individuals with learning differences which impede their participation in mainstream culture, showcasing their unique perspectives and experiences which is of tremendous value. I am particularly excited about the emphasis on community engagement and representation.'
Professor Susan Hogan, PhD, DLitt, is Professor of Arts & Health at the University of Derby and a Professorial Fellow of the Institute of Mental Health at the University of Nottingham. Her latest books are Gender and Difference in the Arts Therapies - Inscribed on the Body (2019); Arts Therapies & Gender in International Arts Therapies Research (2020); The Maternal Tug: Ambivalence, Identity, and Agency (2020); Therapeutic Arts in Pregnancy, Birth and New Parenthood (2020) and Photography - Arts & Health Series (2022)

'Art Therapy with People with Learning Disabilities: Authentic Voices in Clinical Practice and Research is a groundbreaking anthology that rightly provides an important positionality, revealed through authentic co-production and sensitivity with individuals with learning disabilities at the heart of art therapy practice and research. Providing broad scope and depth of inquiry, the contexts range from the UK, Canada, USA, China, and Australia. Important themes of justice, agency, advocacy, and relationality are integral to the chapters co-authored with individuals who have learning disabilities, offering unfiltered insights that challenge traditional power dynamics in therapeutic literature. With practical insights, evidence-based approaches, and innovative practices like community-based partnerships, this book pushes the boundaries of traditional art therapy. It's a must-have for practitioners, educators, and healthcare professionals seeking to deepen their understanding of inclusive art therapy practices, serving as both a valuable resource and a catalyst for change in engaging with individuals with learning disabilities.'
Dominik Havsteen-Franklin, Professor of Practice - Arts Therapies, Brunel University, London