"It is only in being creative that the individual discovers the self."

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Although the status of the nation-wide public health emergency due to the COVID pandemic was recently downgraded, a physical and mental health crisis in this country remains. Post-pandemic staff shortages in medical institutions around the US speak to the growing gap in care, in large part because employees no longer feel safe–financially, physically, or emotionally–in these high-risk, frontline, demanding positions. In response, the Whitney Museum of American Art has recently partnered with NYC Health and Hospitals agency in offering Art in Medicine workshops for all public hospital employees inspired by artwork on loan from the museum’s collection. The hope is that by developing an “art-centered practice” infused with mindful art observation and creation, employees can develop self care and stress management skills that will help combat burnout syndrome on the job. 

Yesterday, inspired by the warmer weather, shifting landscape of the pandemic, and a piece of mixed media art by artist Howardena Pindell, participants were asked to creatively explore the theme of “layering.” They were provided with a range of collage and drawing supplies to engage in an Open Studio Process method of creative writing, artmaking, and self-reflection on their personal exploration of metaphorical layers they wish to examine, keep or shed. The hospital employees in attendance represented various departments within the institution, together creating their own mosaic of different personal experiences and approaches. As they played with, experimented, and engaged in the tactile properties of the materials, self compassion, creative problem solving, and positive perspective-making were emphasized. One participant remarked that she wished she had clear tape so that she could layer her tissue paper pieces in a specific pattern, and a colleague playfully reminded her to “get creative” in finding another way to create the same effect with the materials at hand. Another participant created a vibrant tissue paper flower that blossomed off the page out of the “concrete” below, with each petal representing a layer of herself she wanted to preserve and honor. 

Next, a volunteer shared that she first wrote all about how much responsibility she has and the crushing weight of these burdens. She then began making art and exploring the materials at hand, having “no idea what she was doing.” In the end, she realized that she was “playing” in her artwork through her swirling lines and pops of color, which is what she needed most. Their experiences represent a kind of parallel process that can happen when creating intuitively and having one’s inner experience mirror the outside world. Pediatrician and psychoanalyst D.W. Winnicott writes, “It is in playing and only in playing that the individual child or adult is able to be creative and to use the whole personality, and it is only in being creative that the individual discovers the self.” It was a true joy to witness others in their creative processes of discovery yesterday.

Post and Photograph by Sharon Itkoff Nacache ATR-BC LCAT LPAT PMH-C