Art therapeutic intervention as facilitator of autonomy in a motherdaughter’s relationship

Abstract

This article presents a clinical art therapy case with a child in which I worked towards ego strength and the reach of autonomy. Bonding with mother was intense with excessive primary care not conducive to health. By means of exposure of creative experiences through the arts, the girl gained self-affirmation and could develop a positive transference with her art therapist, who functioned as an auxiliary ego. The existence of a safe art therapeutic environment (transitional space) elicited continence, constancy and independence. This space- separate from her parents- allowed the child freedom of expression in company of the art therapist; it gave her the opportunity to create personal narratives. Through these personal narratives at the end of treatment, the girl could elaborate and symbolize conflicts and traumas derived from an ambivalent bond with her hostile and abusive father.