The Art Therapy Program At Equestrian Connection has been very popular and quite beneficial to many of our clients. Led by Art Therapist Julie Ludwick, Julie presented the benefits of her program in her thesis with an excerpt here.
Therapeutic riding and art therapy: Working with children with special needs, suggests that therapeutic riding and art therapy complement one another and therefore improve the quality of life for physically, mentally, and emotionally challenged individuals and their families. Art and the skills needed to produce work target many areas of a child’s development. Fine motor skills are used, ideas are generated and carried out, and creative and expressive parts of the brain become engaged. By offering a safe environment in which to explore and create, many children feel able to comfortably explore materials and themselves. Consequently, improving in their attention span and focus, creativity, fine motor strength, and self-growth. Many of the participants involved in my thesis research showed increased focus, confidence, assertiveness, and attention span during sessions and across time.
Each year our art therapy students display their work in our Creative Connections Art Show. It is on display in the lobby at Equestrian Connection.
Creative Connections Art Therapy Art Show 2009:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=23oGrvM9u9w
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