I’m often asked if art therapy still works effectively via zoom - my resounding answer is absolutely yes! The core of art therapy is connection and self-expression and with a few inspiring tools and processes, it’s a rich opportunity for collaborative art-making.

I’ve just come from a wonderful online art therapy session with my wonderful client Remy, who is traveling Australia in a caravan with his family. Every two weeks, we get together via zoom and open the Procreate art app on our ipads, and create digital art to share with each other.

Here is a really fun, simple collaborative art experience using Procreate to try, both in person and at home.

Digital, collaborative art therapy

1. Decide on a theme for your first (background) image. Remy chose ‘Chocolate’

2. Open Procreate and create a simple background, inspired by that theme

3. Upload your artwork to share with the other person (we use the chat function in zoom), then open the new upload in Procreate

4. Respond to the new artwork in a way that feels meaningful - this could be based on your personal interests, responding to the colour theme, or continuing with the original theme. Remy and I like to respond to each other’s work, building empathy, problem solving and visual intelligence

5. Continue this process of uploading the newly transformed artwork and keep responding to the art, intentions and/or conversations as you go together. Remy and I chose to do 4 layers of collaborative art.

6. Upload your final artwork and give it a title

Collaborative art-making is a fantastic process to communicate shared interests, develop empathy, negotiate social processes via turn-taking and collaboratively problem solve … and not to mention, it’s incredibly fun!

All artworks shared with permission.

Find out more about the Procreate app here.