Willingly (Mielellään), SAMK
The first visual arts therapy student graduation exhibition of Satakunta will open at the Poriginal Gallery on Friday, June 8, 2001, titled “MIELELLÄÄN.” The three-year program, organized by Satakunta University of Applied Sciences’ Continuing Education Center, was conducted in the university’s Fine Arts teaching facilities in Kankaanpää. The training was carried out in collaboration with the University of Hertfordshire, so participants will receive a Finnish specialization certificate as well as a Post Graduate Diploma in Art Therapy. The development of this training in Kankaanpää was supported by EU funding.
Art therapy is a method used in rehabilitation, where the therapist provides the patient/client with tools, space, and a work environment to reflect on their own life situation. The client group can be anyone interested, regardless of age. Art therapy works in both acute and prolonged life crises, whether the crisis is physical or psychological.
The 12 art therapy students graduating from Kankaanpää have studied art, psychology, psychotherapy, psychiatry, art therapy theory, and have undergone their own psychotherapy. Their practice placements have been in officially recognized and respected healthcare and rehabilitation centers, including Satakunta Central Hospital.
The program was approved in the spring of 2001 as a member of ECARTE (The European Consortium for Arts Therapies Education), which is a European organization that monitors training in the field. The art therapists conducting the training are graduates either from Finland (University of Art and Design, Helsinki) or from England (University of Hertfordshire, University of London, England).
The content of the exhibition differs from a traditional art exhibition in that each student contemplates the meaning of the image primarily for themselves, not always for the audience. Subjectivity is allowed, but the images have consciously been displayed now. Some of the works were created in therapeutic, art therapy-oriented practice groups and may reflect not only the artist’s own reality but also the inner dynamics and emotional atmosphere of the small group. Being in a group for three years has been demanding, painful, and tested their patience. Not everyone can become a therapist. One must endure the trainer’s demands and the self-reflection from various perspectives. If one does not see themselves in relation to others during their studies—one’s own role or personality’s effect on others—then a therapist’s work cannot succeed.
Taina Malmivuori:
Creating my own art has always been therapeutic in some way. I can’t even imagine art without its therapeutic elements… The images do not need to comment on anything or show significant social issues. The paintings do not have to have any particular spiritual or lofty goals. My own paintings are snapshots of my life… No theme is too worn-out or insignificant to be painted.
Tuire Toivola:
Painting for me is a way to gather myself during times of pressure and uncertainty. Sometimes amidst the rush or various demands, I feel I lose myself and my will, and painting helps me regain the feeling of “here I am.” It opens blockages and helps energy flow… The only clear and concrete form I sometimes depict is the human figure. These people also reflect my mood or things I’ve been thinking about around the same time.
Tuula Räisänen:
Having painted and drawn all my life, it has created my own way of speaking. The language of images is universal. How do you capture the image of this moment, and transcend subjective experience?… For the last ten years, I have mainly painted landscapes, rough landscapes of the soul.
Maija Ylitalo:
Nature is important to me both as a place of relaxation and as an inspiration for creating art. Amidst work and studies, I have had the chance to be quiet in the forest at the cabin… My paintings are not always direct depictions of nature. My work reflects many different emotions: longing, yearning, conflicts, hope, and love… At the end of my studies, I’ve made some sort of interim assessment of my life: one circle is closing, opening up to new possibilities. Similarly, the colors in my paintings have calmed down, ready to ignite in new flames.
Päivi Kuusinen:
I discovered my core self in a foreign country far to the East last autumn. In this new land, I experienced something different, something exotic, but also my own uncertainty. I didn’t understand the language they spoke, and I was always lost. There, I was nobody, and nothing was familiar or safe. I realized that a person’s identity is something more than their role. There, my mind emptied of everything, and I was just with myself. I felt like I found within me a gem, a healthy and unscarred core self, that is not dependent on roles. It does not compare itself to anyone else. It simply is.
Riikka Rajapuro:
The works in the exhibition express the process I’ve gone through during my studies. Over time, my expression has taken on new traits. My works now contain more symbolism and images from my inner world. I have tried to listen to myself and avoid external influences. Finding my personal style is important and necessary for me. In a way, I’ve noticed returning to the world of a curious and enthusiastic child who marvels at new things. My inner child is visible in these works. I don’t want to hide it. For me, painting is playful, and at its best, it is like children’s play.