Here we are in the wonderful season of Halloween! This is THE favorite holiday of many children. While the potential of gaining pounds of candy is certainly enticing to children, it’s the costumes that seem to ignite their enthusiasm and potentially awaken their creativity. The value of becoming Princesses and Super Heroes isn’t difficult to grasp, but what about the dark side of Halloween? Can it really be useful, possibly even essential, for children to express their monstrous, evil side? Absolutely! In this workshop you will be introduced to the value of shadow work within the play of children. The dark archetypes of Halloween will be explored as vital influences in a child’s development. AND…You will make your own monster to take back to your office as a symbolic advisor and guide to surviving the perils of childhood.
This is a bring-your-own brown bag lunch. The Center will provide drinks.
Objectives
- Participants will learn about the Jungian concept of shadow work and how Halloween can be a natural opportunity for children to experience this vital process.
- The archetypes that surface within the Halloween experience will be examined and explored.
- Participants will make their own monsters and discuss how this “co-therapist” might enlighten their clinical work.
About the Speaker
Vicki Williams-Patterson has worked as an art therapist since 1983. Her graduate education at Hahnemann University was strongly rooted in developmental psychology and psychodynamic theory, and she has continued with that orientation. Since 1990, she has been conducting seminars on the therapeutic uses of art in the counseling process at local, regional and national conferences. Since receiving her graduate degree in Art Therapy, she has engaged in advanced professional training in the areas of trauma recovery, Jungian psychology, and Sand Tray Process. In November 2009 she received the American Art Therapy Association’s Annual Award for Clinical Services. She has served as President of the Mental Health Counselors Association, a division of the Texas Counseling Association.