Dates
Fri 23 May–Sun 25 May, Mon 2 Jun 2025
Venue
Hybrid
Contact
Convened by
Dr Ronald P.M.H. Lay
Registration
The symposium is open to all and free of charge. Registration is required for individual events.
The Art in Art Therapy: Arts-based research/practice symposium 2025
To honour and assert the art in art therapy, LASALLE’s MA Art Therapy programme will helm an imaginative series of arts-based experiential discussions and workshops.
Anchored by the graduating cohort’s group art therapy exhibition, There & Then, Here & Now, as part of The LASALLE Show Exhibition 2025, this hybrid collective event leverages upon the intelligence, creativity and curiosity inherent within art therapy research and practice.The Art in Art Therapy promises to be a multisensorial experience—collectively across geographical regions through online formats, and intimately through in-person small group engagement with materials and media.
Symposium information
Honouring the creativity, art and human connection in times of profound flux: A dialogue with Dr Pat B. Allen
Moderated by Svetlana Fedotova (Art Therapy, Class of 2025) and Michelle Chee (MA Art Therapy, Class of 2025)
Dialoguing with legends in the profession of art therapy across geographical regions and time zones, strengthens inter-relations—if not ancestral legacies—between generations and communities of art therapy pioneers, art therapists, art therapists-in-training and those about to embark upon transformative art therapy training.
Linking us all indeed, is the art, the artwork, the materials and media, and of course, our interrelationships. Centralising the art in art therapy grounds this dialogue between Dr Pat B. Allen and two of our graduating students—Lana and Michelle—capturing a particular moment in evolving histories and trajectories of art therapy.
 |
About the speaker Pat B. Allen, PhD, ATR, (she/her) is an author, artist, art therapist, and teacher who connects to the Creative Source through art and writing. Her two books—Art Is a Way of Knowing (Shambhala 1995) and Art Is a Spiritual Path (Shambhala 2005)—explore the borders between art, psychology, spirituality and social action and are considered classics in the field of expressive arts therapy. Author of numerous professional articles and book chapters, Dr Allen lectures and delivers workshops nationally and internationally. Her artwork has been exhibited in a wide variety of juried and invited exhibits. Dr Allen served on the faculty of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago for twenty years and has taught at many colleges and universities nationally and internationally including JFKU in Berkeley. Dr Allen co-founded the Open Studio Project in Chicago and Studio Pardes in Oak Park, IL and continues to provide inspiration and leadership in the community art studio movement in the field of expressive arts therapy. Dr Allen is affiliated with the Jewish Studio Project and can be reached at pat@jewishstudioproject.org |
Honouring the art in art therapy across, between and within cultures and contexts: A dialogue with Shaun McNiff
Moderated by Yesha Sheth (MA Art Therapy, Class of 2025) and David Gan (MA Art Therapy, Class of 2026)
 |
About the speaker Shaun McNiff is internationally recognised for furthering universal access to artistic expression as a source of creative well-being and human understanding. He is the recipient of numerous honors and awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award of the Journal of Applied Arts & Health and in 2023 the Journal published a special issue celebrating his life contributions which include “leading a global commitment to art-based research.” Shaun was awarded citations by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Senate and House of Representatives as “Founder and Champion of Expressive Arts Therapy”; and the Honorary Life Member Award of the American Art Therapy Association. |
Art-Full Bag by Candice Chan (MA Art Therapy, Class of 2023), MA, AThR
2:00pm–5:00pm
National Design Centre, Annex Building Floor 2
Open to MA Art Therapy students
Art-Full Bag is an invitation to explore the artful and meaningful dimensions of art therapy practice. In this workshop, we will discover how our literal and metaphorical toolkits shape our unique relationships with art and guide our intentional approaches to psychotherapy.
What do we choose to carry into our sessions? How do certain art skills shape the way we relate and respond? And in what ways are we carried by the very tools we use?
As we fill our bags, this session will also offer space to create while engaging in dialogues about the meaningful layers of our professional identities.
All materials will be provided—just bring along your curiosity and the tools that inspire your practice.
 |
About the facilitator Candice Chan, MA, AThR is a registered art therapist who is dedicated to the wonders of the creative process. Her path has woven through diverse landscapes from supporting adults with dementia to working alongside people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and now brings Candice into the vibrant world of supporting children and families in early intervention at Thye Hua Kwan Moral Charities. By weaving elements of play into her art therapy practice, Candice helps people tell their stories, build resilience, and rediscover joy. Drawing on her roots in industrial-organisational psychology, she brings both structure and spontaneity to her practice and the workshops she leads for professionals seeking to reconnect with creativity as a tool for insight and change. |
Clay sculpting workshop by Yeo Jun Sin Benedict (MA Art Therapy, Class of 2025) and Nathaniel Geordy (MA Art Therapy, Class of 2025)
9:00am–12:00pm
National Design Centre, Annex Building Floor 2
Open to MA Art Therapy students
This workshop will help participants explore and express their emotions nonverbally through the tactile and symbolic process of clay modelling. It aims to foster emotional awareness, self-expression and grounding.
 |
About the facilitators With a background in architecture, Nathaniel Geordy (Geo) has long been fascinated by the influence of the physical environment on human psychology. His further interest in the connection between visual arts and well-being led him to pursue training in art psychotherapy. As part of his studies in LASALLE's MA Art Therapy programme, Geo gained clinical experience by supporting children living with autism (autism spectrum disorder) at a charity organisation as well as with students encountering life challenges, particularly academic difficulties, in an after-school care centre. His research focuses on using an empathetic approach to enhance therapeutic outcomes, particularly in helping children with emotional regulation, behavioural challenges, self-esteem and social skills. |
 |
Benedict Yeo is a fine arts trained practicing art therapist with brief experiences working in the forensic field. It is through these experiences that cultivated Benedict's desire to pursue an MA in Art Therapy in LASALLE to reach out to a wider population by incorporating the therapeutic factors he fostered in his art practices. Through the MA Art Therapy programme, Benedict had the opportunity to expand his clinical experience through working with a government organisation such as residential homes for adolescents under probation order or child protection, as well as adolescents within public school settings. Being a sculptural trained artist, Benedict creates 3D artwork as a form of self care, with each artworks representing a snapshot of the time of creation. Effectively creating a tangible form of his emotions to better identify areas of self-improvement that could be used to further develop his professional identity. Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bendo_creates/ |
Material exploration: resin and jesmonite by Elaine Tan (MA Art Therapy, Class of 2026)
1:00pm–4:00pm
National Design Centre, Annex Building Floor 2
Open to MA Art Therapy students
In this three-hour hands-on workshop, participants will explore the creative and therapeutic potential of two contemporary mediums—resin and jesmonite.
The sensory and tactile qualities of jesmonite will be explored through experimental play, and participants will create a terrazzo and marble trinket tray. The session then moves into resin work, where participants embed elements such as words, drawings or photographs into a coaster, and learn resin sealing and colour pouring techniques.
The workshop invites reflection on the unique characteristics of these materials and how they may support emotional expression, containment and cognitive meaning-making.
No prior experience is required—this workshop is suitable for anyone curious to explore and play with these mediums.
Materials: Participants are welcome to bring a flat object or photo (no larger than 8cm in diameter) that they may wish to include in their piece – all other art materials will be provided.
 |
About the facilitator Elaine Tan is the founder of Resin Play, a studio specialising in resin art workshops and supplies. With over 13 years of experience in jewellery making and 15 years of working with resin, she brings a strong technical foundation and spirit of experimentation to her material practice. Her background spans contemporary jewellery, fashion marketing and brand management. Currently training as an art therapist, Elaine is exploring how fluid yet resistive, tactile materials like resin and jesmonite can support therapeutic processes and goals. |
We(eave) Together by Paul Wong Kei Yan (MA Art Therapy, Class of 2016)
9:00am–12:00pm
National Design Centre, Annex Building Floor 2
Open to MA Art Therapy students
In a highly individualistic and lonely society, one might forget that community and connection is all around us. This workshop will be a two-part exploration of individual crocheted works and a larger connected tapestry, symbolising a unified perspective that connects us through the metaphoric and symbolic means of an intricate and colourful artwork installation.
The first part of the workshop provides a foundation of crocheting, the different types of stitch and theories behind how it works. Each participant will learn about the different uses of needles and needle sizes, types of yarn, and will make their own basic shapes to begin with.
The second part of the workshop will involve creating a larger collective tapestry which will be temporarily installed in the workshop space..
Materials are provided. However, participants are encouraged to also bring their own crochet needles and yarns.
 |
About the facilitator Paul Wong Kei Yan is a self-taught crochet artist with a deep interest in fibre arts and yarn work. A talent acquisition partner for a software company by day, and a crochet artist by night, Paul loves the construction of objects and wearables through stitches and knots. He enjoys challenging the notion that crochet is a gender- or age-specific craft and wishes to inspire more people to make things from scratch. A qualified art therapist who graduated from the MA Art Therapy programme from LASALLE College of the Arts, Paul is discovering therapeutic elements behind the repetitive motion of crocheting and hopes to further incorporate these elements in future collaborative workshops. |
Ground, connect, create: Nature-based art therapy by Samantha Hickman (MA Art Therapy, Class of 2018), MA, AThR, HCPC registered
2:00pm–5:00pm
National Design Centre, Annex Building Floor 2 and online
In-person workshop capped at 30 participants, no limit for online participants
This experiential workshop will include a presentation encompassing the benefits and clinical and ethical considerations of working with nature and beyond the traditional therapy space.
There will be an opportunity to create response art following the presentation, with reflections and sharing. There is also an optional invitation to make a temporary artwork prior to the workshop and bring reflections to discuss.
 |
About the facilitator Samantha Hickman, MA, AThR, HCPC became an art therapist to integrate her own creative practice into working with others. Sam works with charity and local organisations offering a socially engaged community and private practice. She covers a wide spectrum of reasons for therapy from living with cancer, depression, stress, and anxiety, to anger, grief and loss, and trauma, and works both with groups or on an individual basis. Sam works predominantly with adults and has specialised in supporting people living with cancer. As a parent carer, she also supports parents of SEND children to navigate their journey. She works with a wide range of art materials to explore the creative process in a welcoming, confidential and non-judgemental space to foster insight, and awareness, whilst building resilience and new perspectives.Sam has exhibited in Singapore and the UK, has delivered online and in-person workshops at international conferences and universities, and is a published writer on art therapy, practices and processes. She regularly contributes to regional art therapy continued professional development and is available for supervision. She is a member of the British Association of Art Therapists (BAAT) and is HCPC registered. She is also DBS approved. |
10:00am–12:00pm, 1:00pm–3:30pm
Lecture Theatre, Block F Level 2 #F202, LASALLE College of the Arts
This Watch Party is hosted by Dr Ronald P.M.H. Lay as part of the Arts in Healing International Film Festival 2025.
Learn more about the festival here.
The Art in Art Therapy is anchored by the graduating cohort’s group art therapy exhibition, There & Then, Here & Now, taking place as part of The LASALLE Show Exhibition 2025.
Browse the exhibition catalogue here.