Between February and May, 2021, CATA-ACAT hosted a 3-part workshop exploring anti-racist and anti-oppressive practices in creative therapies.

Facilitated by Virginia Jahyu (MA, ExAT) and open to practitioners and students working in all creative arts therapies, the workshops offered spaces for collaboration, sharing of experiences and knowledges, and community-building across disciplines through guided art-making and discussions. Sessions were free to attend, participants could attend any or all 3 parts.

Workshop Series

Part 1: Liberation Healing
Engaging with our different and interconnected identities and histories
Session for creative arts therapists and students (CATS) identifying as Black, Indigenous, or people of colour (BIPOC) only: Saturday, February 20 at 1-3 pm EST
Session for all creative arts therapists and students: Saturday, March 6 at 1-3 pm EST

Part 2: Power, Oppression, Resistance, and Resilience
Everyday interactions within relations of power and positionality
Session for CATS identifying as BIPOC only: Saturday, April 10 at 1-3 pm EST
Session for all CATS: Saturday, April 17 at 1-3 pm EST

Part 3 - Commitment and Taking Action
Imagining and co-creating a safe(r) and more equitable space for all peoples
Session for CATS identifying as BIPOC only: Saturday, May 8 at 1-3 pm EST
Session for all CATS: Saturday, May 29 at 1-3 pm EST

Resistance Art - A Collective Gallery

Participants in workshop part 2, Power, Oppression, Resistance, and Resilience, were invited to create resistance art in regards to social justice issues that are important to them. This gallery is created as a space for creative arts therapists to connect with, inspire, and encourage one another through the sharing of images and words.

Please click on the individual artwork to view the full images and statements.

*Please note that the gallery is best viewed on a desktop. The texts containing the artists’ information will appear with the mouse hovering over the image after clicking on the individual image. This function unfortunately does not work on a mobile device that does not utilize a mouse, such as a phone or tablet. We apologize for the inconvenience this technical limitation may cause.

Accessible documents:
Poem by Dr. Fyre Jean Graveline
Poem by Suzanne Thomson

Video of artwork by Amy Lister

Audio of song by Hannah You

Zines on Commitment & Taking Action

In workshop part 3, Commitment and Taking Action, participants were invited to create zines about the social justice issues they are committed to. Some of the zines are shared in the Spring 2021 issue of Envisage: CATA-ACAT Online Magazine.

Facilitator:
Virginia Jahyu (she/her) is a Toronto-based expressive arts therapist in private practice.
She is inspired by liberation healing practices and is dedicated to decolonizing therapeutic spaces with a special interest in supporting marginalized and racialized individuals and communities. Her work is centered around relationships and using the arts and dialogue as catalysts for personal inquiry, discovery, and growth. Virginia holds a master's degree in Expressive Arts Therapy and proudly serves as the Vice President of the Ontario Expressive Arts Therapy Association. To learn more about Virginia, please visit: www.artstherapy.ca

For questions please contact aopworkinggroup@canadianarttherapy.org