CATANews

p r e s i d e n t ’ s m e s s a g e

With the new spring upon us we must take stock

of our incredible growth over the past few

months. For quite some time we had the idea

that elemental pieces of CATA needed to be re-

visited so we could begin on a solid foundation.

With quite a bit of organizational and logistical

help from our administrator, we managed to

have a visioning retreat in Vancouver in early

December 2014 with some new and old board

members. By the end of the two and a half day

meeting we not only hammered out our vision

and mission (published in this issue), but also

formed new and strong bonds among the board

members.

The next step was to revise and create a logo

that reflected the new CATA: Large, national,

bold and bilingual. We decided to stay in-house

for that project because we have so many tal-

ented graphic artists amongst us we did not need

to shop around.

Late last year we took a major step into the new

century; we handed over the publication of our

journal to Routledge Publishing. We still control

the editorial content but Taylor and Francis will

do the work of design, printing, as well as mar-

keting the journal to a wider audience. We look

forward to the new look and feel of the journal.

We also stepped into the “legislative lobby” arena

this January to take part in the professional coali-

tion in BC (formally called Federation of Associa-

tions for Counselling Therapists in British Colum-

bia or FACTBC) to help press the government for

the establishment of a formal college of health

professionals. Our ultimate goal is to have the

art therapy practice accredited in BC as has hap-

pened recently in Ontario.

We also launched an advocacy group. It is work-

ing, among other things, on a public campaign to

help protect our profession by educating employ-

ers on the qualifications of art therapists. The

goal is to inform our public about art therapy to

expose untrained practitioners who claim to

practice art therapy.

And finally, our hats off to the organising team

for the 2015 conference who has been hard at

work since the end of the last year’s conference.

I look forward to seeing most of you in beautiful

Halifax this October. I hope to have much good

news to announce when we meet.

Mehdi Naimi, MA, RCAT, RCC

Nanoose Bay

t h i s i s s u e P.2 editor’s notes

P.3 new CATA vision and mission

P.4 chapters and committees

P.6 around campus

P.10 cata conference

P.14 upcoming events

F A L L / W I N T E R 2 0 1 5

I S S U E

03 V O L U M E

13

mehdi na imi Nanoose Bay, BC

o u r m i s s i o n

To encourage and sponsor

activities which enhance

knowledge of and skills in

art therapy.

To foster the dissemina-

tion of information about

art therapy services, prac-

tices and training oppor-

tunities to professional indi-

v idua ls , p rofess iona l

groups, educational and

mental health institutions

and other interested indiv-

iduals and groups in Can-

ada.

To provide a meeting

ground for adequately

trained and experienced

practising art therapists

who have professional

backgrounds in the field of

health and education.

To practise, maintain, ad-

vance, coordinate and pro-

mote interests in art ther-

apy and the practise of art

therapists in the field of

health in Canada.

I am a student member finishing up the practicum portion of my Masters in Counselling Psychology specialization in Art Therapy at Athabasca University and the Vancouver Art Therapy Institute. This poem (pg. 10) was inspired by a self-portrait identity project that I offer to immigrant youth and adults considered to be "at-risk". The piece of artwork is a response to reflections on my own identity.

nadina dodd vancouver, BC

Dear CATA-ACAT community,

2015 is going to be a thrilling

year for CATA-ACAT. Firstly, we

have a new vision and mission

that encompass and clearly

explain what we will accom-

plish. Throughout the year, we

will continue to improve CATA-

ACAT’s image through different

communication platforms and

provide our members with

great opportunities to help us in

this pursuit.

We are making innovative

strides to become the future of

art therapy in Canada and will

continue to expand on our rich

history. CATA-ACAT is catching

up with the technology era, and

with the help of our new Social

Media Committee; CATA-ACAT

has created a CATA-ACAT Twit-

ter and Instagram, in addition

to our existing Facebook pages.

Through these popular and

accessible venues, we continue

to find new ways to reach out

to communities and inform

CATANews is the tri-annual

newsletter of the Canadian Art

Therapy Association, published in

February, June and October

annually and circulated by email

to our 440+ membership.

Content is provided by members

and is subject to editing.

copy & advertising deadlines

Sep 1st - Oct to Jan

Jan 1st - Feb to May

May 1st - Jun to Sep

Advertising rates are $5/sq in.

newsletter committee

chair/editor

Haley Toll (ON)

catanewsletter@gmail.com

designer

Krista Schneider (ON)

proofing

Dianne Shannon (SK)

administration

Lynn Holloway (BC)

cata.office.manager@gmail.com

(Tel) 250-954-3883

mailing address

PO Box 658, Stn Main

Parksville, BC V9P 2G7

website

www.canadianarttherapy.org

them about what art therapists

do (and how much fun we

have).

Another significant develop-

ment is that the Canadian Art

Therapy Association Journal

has a new guest chief editor,

Marilyn Magnuson, MSW, RSW,

CCAT, DVATI, RN. Her exten-

sive academic background and

30 years of practice will give

the journal a new flavor and

perspective. Routledge will be

the journal’s new publisher,

which will improve the quality,

international profile and elec-

tronic access to our journal. I

encourage all of our student

and professional academic

members to submit their inno-

vative research to our journal.

Working with enthusiastic vol-

unteers who are passionate

about furthering our art therapy

community inspires me. Thank

you to all of the hard working

volunteers, board members and

our indispensable administra-

tive assistant in supporting

CATA-ACAT’s new and fresh

outlook. I would like to invite

anyone with dynamic ideas

about how to improve CATA-

ACAT’s communication and

image to contact me. Please

share your thoughts and en-

ergy. An example would be

how to improve our website.

Our community is interdepend-

ent and our progress depends

on our visionary members.

Furthermore, I would like to

thank the talented and creative

participants who submitted

designs for the new Canadian

Art Therapy Association logo.

The next newsletter will be

distributed in July 2015 and

CATA-ACAT wants to promote

your work, research and pro-

fessional perspectives. Please

share what you do and your

passions with our community

a n d s u b m i t t o

cata.communications.chair@gm

ail.com.

Sincerely yours,

Haley Toll

Ottawa ON

e d i t o r ’ s n o t e s

haley to l l Ottawa, ON

2

cover artwork by Nadina Dodd

Painting Representing CATA’s Materializing Future Possibili-ties, 2014, Acrylic on Canvas, 24” x 36” by Haley Toll

3

CANADIAN ART THERAPY ASSOCIATION D’ART THERAPIE CANADIENNE

Would like to announce our NEW and EXCITING vision and mission:

Canadian Art Therapy Association: The Future of Art Therapy

OUR VISION:

We are the Canadian voice of Art Therapy. We bring together art therapists to raise standards and advance the profession.

4

Happy New Year! 2015

has brought new momentum

and motivation for the CATA

Prairie Chapter to mobilize

our current membership and

reach out to new colleagues

and community mem-

bers. As such, we have

some exciting plans in the

works, including a CATA-

hosted creative gathering in

February and an upcoming

workshop on March 21 & 22,

2015.

The CATA Prairie Chapter

joined for a creative, fun,

collegial afternoon of art-

making/ self-care in Calgary.

The session began with a

creative experience facili-

tated by Calgary artist and

art therapist Kristin Boettger,

and was followed by a lively

and collaborative discussion

around building community

and capacity for all mental

health workers and students

that use creative expressions

in their practice. Art thera-

pists were able to meet and

connect in order to feel reju-

venated.

Wishing you all a wonderful

and inspired year of creativ-

ity, depth and connection.

by laws upda te

waqas yousafzai Edmonton, AB

Hello and Happy New Year to

all CATA-ACAT members!

In line with our promise

at CATA-ACAT's Annual General

Meeting held in Nelson in Sep-

tember 2014, CATA-ACAT is

now making the bylaws text in

its totality accessible to our

entire membership for com-

ment and feedback. If you are

interested in reviewing, com-

menting, and having your say

towards the future of our or-

ganization, this is your opportu-

nity to join in! The change is

brought upon the organization

by a much larger external force

- The Canada Not-for-profit

Corporations Act. CATA was

originally incorporated federally

under the Canada Corporations

Act in 1981, and the new NFP

Act has set a transition deadline

for all NGOs to update their

Articles of Incorporation to be

inline with the act within three

years of October 2011 (the

date the act received royal ac-

cent in Canada). The penalty

for not complying is severe and

failure may lead to CATA being

rendered inactive and subse-

quently dissolved.

We are therefore required to

work as an association on our

charter documents (bylaws) to

get our Certificate of Continua-

tion. Together, the membership

of CATA-ACAT is the national

voice of art therapy in Canada

but the task of getting a large

500+ membership organization

to sit together to draft by-laws

is too large, and understanda-

bly quite platitudinal. To speed

up the process, members of

the CATA-ACAT board got to-

gether in July 2014 to re-write

the by-laws. They have there-

fore provided the membership

with a skeleton of what the by-

laws may look like. They have

utilized the official Industry

Canada bylaw builder and tried

their best to maintain the conti-

nuity and integrity of CATA’s

previous bylaws.

To have your say, you can ac-

cess the forum online by visit-

ing our website at http://

canadianarttherapy.org.

Upon logging into your account,

you can access the ‘Forums’

area on the left panel of the

website. By clicking ‘Bylaws’

under this tab, you would be

taken directly to an online and

public discussion of CATA-

ACAT's bylaw review. Having

your say in the affairs of your

organization through the by-

laws is just one way to get in-

volved. As a small nonprofit

non-governmental organization,

CATA-ACAT is always looking

for volunteers to help make the

voice of Canadian art therapy

louder and clearer. Please con-

tact us if you would like to

get involved.

chapters and commit tees

pra i r i e chap te r news

kr i st in boettger Calgary, AB

As an art therapist working in

the Cariboo Region, I wonder

some days what kind of an

impact I’m making. I have an

established contracting busi-

ness, Art 4 Life Therapy, and I

was managing a group home

with adults with disabilities one

year ago in Burnaby, BC. Early

last January, I moved to the

10,000 population of Williams

Lake, BC. Now, working full-

time at a Wellness Centre with

First Nations youth and fami-

lies, conducting art therapy

there and with individual cli-

ents, I figured I could take on a

volunteer position with the Ca-

nadian Art Therapy Association.

Having been a member with

CATA for a decade, I figured it

was time to get involved in the

governing body. I am in charge

of the new Twitter account

@cata_art. Please follow and

suggest others to follow!

Digesting the year, the most

impressive thing I did was fol-

low my heart! Working with

First Nations in the Cariboo, I

work with a wonderful multi-

cultural team in a wholistic en-

vironment that supports Métis

and Inuit clientele also. Attend-

ing Sophia’s Schneider’s

‘Medicine Wheel’ workshop at

the Adler School of Professional

P s y c h o l o g y a n d

Fyre Jean Graveline’s ‘HeART as

Ceremony: An Indigenous Path

to Wholism and Balance’ work-

shops at the annual CATA con-

ference were certainly high-

lights supporting my work.

At the end of the 2014 CATA

conference, held in Nelson,

B.C., Monica Carpendale asked

the attendees to make a pledge

and create a postcard repre-

senting our ‘Call to Compas-

sionate Action’. I took this task

seriously and I am continuing

my call to you that I believe

can make an impact. I pledge

to assist in bringing art therapy

to remote communities and to

individuals that are segregated

or have limited access to main-

stream society. Art is a lan-

guage that we can all speak

and therapy is a framework

that supports this language. We

are on a co-creative journey

and we are all involved. Please

find me on Facebook, LinkedIn

and Twitter. I’d love to connect

and share ideas with you!

It is an absolute pleasure to

be new to the Ethics Commit-

tee as the chair. The Ethics

Committee values what it

means to be an art therapist

in Canada, and emphasizes

the importance of a practice

that is held by qualified and

knowledgeable art therapists.

Currently, there are new and

exciting ideas being put forth

that will strengthen the con-

nection and practice of Cana-

dian Art Therapists. I am

reaching out to invite all in-

terested members to contact

me with their ideas and

thoughts, so we as a commit-

tee can add to the discussion

of what ethical practice looks

like in Canada.

Please contact me if you

would like to be part of the

discussion!

a message f rom the new soc ia l med ia cha i r

kayla cardinal Winn ipeg, MB

5

new e th i c s cha i r

andrea hrysko Williams Lake, BC

6

t a t i ’s h igh - l eve l v i s i t w i th the f i r s t l ady pence o f i nd iana

On October 8, 2014 TATI was

honoured to host the Governor

of Indiana’s wife, First Lady

Karen Pence, for a visit and

tour. We had received notice

that she and her husband were

visiting Toronto that day and

TATI was one of the places she

wanted to visit while in our fair

city. We invited some of our

graduates and current stu-

dents, instructors and board

members to join us to talk

about art therapy with First

Lady Pence. She shared with us

her history of teaching art in

the public school system and

her passion for doing artwork

herself. Her specialty is water-

colors of homes and historical

buildings.

First Lady Pence is honorary

chair of the Art Therapy Initia-

tive at Riley Children's Hospital

in Indianapolis as well as a

member of Riley Children’s

Foundation Board. She also

serves as a board member for

Tracy's Kids, an art therapy

program for several children's

hospitals in Washing-

ton, D.C. We also in-

vited Lynne Jenkins,

Clinical Director of the

Barbara Schlifer Clinic

in Toronto to speak

about the clinic’s art

therapy project with

the Gardiner Museum

and Suzanne Thom-

son, RCAT, DTATI.

First Lady Pence initiated a

project in Indiana in which peo-

ple could donate their old cell

phones to women in domestic

violence shelters and was very

interested to hear about the

Barbara Schlifer Clinic/Gardiner

Museum art therapy project for

women who have experienced

trauma in their lives.

he lene burt Toronto, ON

around campus

January 5th, 2015 was a his-

toric day when the Adler School

of Professional Psychology offi-

cially became Adler University!

To celebrate the event the

un ive r s i t y c rea ted the

#IBelieveOneDay Project, a

video series inspired by Adler

University students, faculty,

staff, and alumni committed to

creating a more just society.

We invite you to take a peek at

the Vancouver Campus

#IBelieveOneDay video in

which MCP: Art Therapy stu-

dent, Elizabeth Ramsey makes

a passionate statement about

her beliefs in the role of crea-

tivity and the arts in healing.

Enjoy!

Links:

Video 1

http://vimeo.com/116171770

Video 2

http://vimeo.com/116171613

dr . duan ita g e len iak Vancouver, BC

i n t roduc ing ad le r un ive rs i ty !

7

Dr. Eleniak with MCP: Art Therapy students Raman Samara and

Cassandra Evans during an open studio in Studio One.

Did you know that CATA has

its own Facebook group?

Facebook offers three pri-

vacy levels for groups:

Open, closed and secret.

We have chosen a “closed

group” format to ensure the

people joining are actually

interested in art therapy and

will not try to sell anyone

anything.

The names of closed groups

are visible, as are the lists of

members, but only members

can see the content that is

posted on closed groups.

You can become a member

by requesting inclusion in

the group. This “invitation

only” policy allows the CATA

Facebook group adminis-

trators to approve each per-

son that joins. All CATA

members are welcome in

this group!

The opportunity is to be able

to be in discussion and bring

topics of interest to the Ca-

nadian art therapy commu-

nity. We hope you’ll con-

sider joining soon!

10

From Haley Toll,

CATA Communications

Committee Chair:

Thank you Andrea Hrysko

for joining the team and

becoming the new Social

Media Committee Chair!

Your willingness to dedicate

your time to improve CATA’s

visibility through our new

Twitter, Instagram (through

Julie Lemelin), Facebook and

eventually LinkedIn is truly

appreciated and inspiring! I

am so excited for all of the

great things we will accom-

plish!

CATA would also like to

thank Nathalia Gagnon

and Marjorie Lavoie for

their hard work translating

and proofreading the Cana-

dian Art Therapy Associa-

tion’s publication content!

Your work in making CATA

more accessible to our val-

ued French members is

priceless.

On November 29, 2014 our full-

time diploma cohort concluded

their studies at VATI with a

memorable potluck lunch and

graduation ceremony. Oozing

creativity and the spirit of art

therapy, VATI staff presented

us with our ‘unofficial’ hand-

made diplomas (which would

later be accompanied by their

official counterparts).

“The graduation ceremony was

intimate, creative, and a lovely

conclusion to our time to-

gether,” said Amy Ruttan, a

fellow graduate.

After the ceremony we enjoyed

our final group studio session

facilitated by Gretchen Ladd. It

was a meaningful opportunity

to make art together one last

time as a group. To ease the

goodbyes Gretchen provided

each of us with a small canvas

to paint for one of our class-

mates, reflecting on what they

had taught us throughout the

year. As a final conclusion we

presented our works of art to

each other and shared our

thoughts about the tight bonds

we’d built with one another.

After Graduation

After spending 15 consecutive

months with my cohort it’s hard

to believe we are now ventur-

ing off on our own journeys. I

checked in with a few class-

mates to share with you what

they have been up to since

graduation.

Hayley Lee

– As we concluded our studies

at VATI Hayley was presented

with a job offer from her practi-

cum site where she provided

individual art therapy services

to seniors living in residential

care. Eager to enter the work-

force and passionate about her

work with seniors Hayley ac-

cepted the opportunity and

now works four days a week at

two residential care facilities in

Burnaby and Vancouver.

Zehra Kizilbash – Zehra is

employed full-time as an em-

ployment counsellor working

with refugees and recent immi-

grants. She is also completing

her final paper which investi-

gates the effectiveness of using

arts-based interventions with

refugees. In her group work-

shops she utilizes art therapy

theory and looks to the creative

process for inspiration and as a

method of communication. Due

to client language barriers she

often finds that visual commu-

nication is the most effective

tool to use with clients and

fosters self-expression and con-

nection.

va t i g raduat i on hanna verhagen Vancouver, BC

8

The Pollution Within or LowTide Collection

They say: “A human need can still be commoditized,

whereas if water is declared a human right, it can no longer be sold, traded,

or denied to those who can not afford it.” Lucy the Clown has a Frown.

This is Not Funny. Big Money. is Killing Us.

Water. Beautiful Sacred Blood of Earth Mother. is our Teacher. Healer. Gives Nourishment. Cleanliness.

We cannot Survive. without Water. Yet. every Second.Minute.Hour.Day.

Industrial Wastes.Pollutants are Spilled.Seep.are Dumped. into Waterways.Watersheds.Watertaps.

When the Tide is Low. there is so much to Show. Top 10 No-No Ingredient List:

Ammonia; Chlorine Bleach; DEA (diethanolamine); TEA (triethanolamine);

Parabens; Phthlates; Formaldehyde; Nonylphenol; ethoxylates

Triclosan; SLS/SLES. Look them Up. If Water has No-Nos.

Your Blood.Sweat.Tears. are full of them too. We must Liberate ourselves. on the Spot.

from their Power over Us. over Water. Name.Own.Challenge.Change.

the Pollution Within. the Pollution Without. Freeing Ourselves means:

Speaking Out. Against Greed.

Against Delusion. Against Hatred.

Against Big Money. We know Swimming Against the Stream.

the MainStream. that is. can be Painful.Exhausting.Lonely.

Activists. Learn to Recuperate. Simply. Connect with the Waters of Life.

Rains. Snows. Rivers. Ponds. Streams. Waterfalls. Oceans. Slow. Go with the Flow.

Accept. the Natural Ebb and Flow. of Tide’s Highs and Lows. of Waters Toos and Fros.

Sometimes. be Racing and Rocky. Sometimes. be Still like Glistening Glass.

The Pollution Within, in heART for eARTh blog fyre jean grave l ine Musquodoboit Harbour, NS

9

Continuing on the theme of Abuses against our Earth Mother. And how these Abuses are Internalized by Us. as Disease. I offer The Pollution Within. or Low Tide Collection.

If you would like to be in touch you can connect with her at fyrejean@eastlink.ca

From Mehdi Naimi,

CATA President:

If I have to choose one per-

son out of all of our volun-

teers to thank I will do two

things: First, scream in pro-

test that it is not fair and

that it is too hard to choose

only one. And second, once

I accept the rule you have

set up, I would choose

Waqas. He came to volun-

teer his time and his energy,

his expertise and his pas-

sion, for us, without fully

knowing what he was get-

ting into. And now, after

about eight months of work-

ing with him, I have to say I

am quite impressed by his

willingness to focus on the

hard stuff and to get the job

done in a concentrated and

timely manner, with profes-

sional grace, and always

with a great smile. Thank

you Waqas for being such a

great and inspiring team

player.

C A T A C O N F E R E N C E The Beautiful City of Nelson, British Columbia

Welcomes a Huge Increase in Participants in the Canadian Art Therapy Association Conference, September 2014

Elizabeth Cunningham, MA. Expressive Arts Therapy

10

I attended the Canadian Art Therapy Association (CATA) conference this year in Nelson BC, centered at the Kutenai Art Therapy Institute, both as an expressive arts therapist and as a photographer. Manoeuvring between the roles of engaged participant and observer/recorder was a chal-lenging exercise, which gave me a unique perspective on the workshops and presentations that I was able to attend. Sometimes I could stand back and watch the fascinating proc-ess of the groups immersed in art making and the dynamics of relationship while other times I could step into the role of par-ticipant to experience the crea-tive shift that happens with any arts-based process. The three-day conference was a colourful kaleidoscope of presentations and workshops

offered by art therapists from every province and territory across Canada and as far away as Israel and Spain. It was a lively, diverse cohort of 150

participants, a significant in-crease over last year’s enrol-ment of just under 100. There were so many more registrants than expected that extra ven-ues in Nelson needed to be engaged for the diverse work-shops.

Monica Carpendale, Director of

the Kutenai Art Therapy Insti-tute in Nelson and coordinator of this year`s CATA conference, introduced her long-time men-tor and colleague, Margaret Jones-Callahan on Friday morn-ing for the key note presenta-tion. Margaret`s heartfelt pres-entation highlighting mindful-ness in the work of art therapy was moving in its depth and range of experience. An inno-vative “elder” in the field, Mar-garet continued to inspire therapists of all ages through-out the weekend with her tire-less participation and significant insights. International perspectives were provided by such participants as Judith Siano from Haifa, Israel, and Sibylle Cseri from Barcelona, Spain. Juanita Kiff, dressed in polka dots and swirling skirts, offered us the opportunity to have a lively time making hula hoops. Moving with a hula hoop while being engaged in a therapy session is one of her extraordi-nary specialties as an art therapist. During his presentation of Afri-can storytelling, art and music, Chartwell Dutiro, in full Zim-babwe costume complete with porcupine head dress, told a thoroughly engaging folktale while playing his fascinating gourd-shaped mbira. The chil-dren participating in this family-oriented workshop were mes-merized and gave very creative artistic feedback.

Keynote Speaker,

Margaret Jones-Callahan

Hula Hoop Workshop

with Juanita Kiff.

Identity

and

the Transcendent

Power of Art

I stand amidst a field of curious

eyes

From other worlds

Blinking and hoping eyes

Ready to be immersed in the

knowing of their own identities.

Verbal language is a barrier

That does not dissuade me

For I know that art will tran-

scend these linguistic walls.

The newcomers before me are

“at risk”

But their courage is palpable.

Stories of loss and hope arrive

like new buds in Spring.

In a new land

The uncovering and creating

begins,

Life-sized,

With bits of the old

And pieces of the new.

History and culture

Are shed and strengthened.

Dreams and desires

Are grasped and let go.

Two worlds are balanced,

One afar and one underfoot.

I learn about love and terror

Anger and faith

And get tied into a dream

catcher at the end of the day.

Nadina Dodd

November 4, 2014

tremendously challenging voca-tion they share and to pass on their enthusiasm and courage to each other and to the stu-dents attending. Like every other aspect of the conference, the social element was carefully orchestrated and it blossomed beautifully. From the delicious, healthy meals, to the fantastic array of local musicians per-forming at the Capitol Theatre on Friday night, the lively luncheon conversations and the wild abandon of the Saturday night dancing at the Hume Ho-tel with music by the fabulous band of Clinton Swanson with singer Bessie Wapp, the week-end was full of fun for every-one involved. The closing ceremony, clearly

an example of community gath-

ering and celebration, was held

in a conference room in the

Prestige Hotel. This venue was

engaged at the last moment

with incredible flexibility by the

11

The Collage Process workshop, facilitated by Medhi Naimi, was so popular that a larger hall had to be rented in order to accommodate all the partici-pants. On a gloriously sunny autumn morning, Will Parker took us outside to connect to nature, engaging with the small natural beauties of the urban land-scape. Trained in environ-mental science, Will uses the stories we all share about our experiences with nature to help heal mental health challenges. There was even a workshop, presented by Germany’s Mar-tina Danzer, on horses and art therapy, which explained how working with horses relates to the skill of being an art thera-pist. Stand and wait for the horse (or client) to approach rather than assertively going towards them seemed to be her gentle message. Although the topic of the con-ference “Art Therapy in the Service of Peace” had an ear-nestly serious intent and the presentations were thoughtful and often profound in their depth, my overall impression of the conference was that it was a joyful and fascinatingly di-verse celebration of the work that art therapists do in the world. The conference was also a phenomenal example of how important it is for practitioners to come together to affirm the

Friday night performance with Chartwell Dutiro and Nicole LeBihan.

conference planning team be-

cause of an early morning fire

at the originally-planned site.

Monica Carpendale gathered

her versatile colleagues early in

the morning and together they

quickly created a colourful,

welcoming space for all the

conference participants to

come together to say farewell.

Native Métis Elder, Donna

Wright led the large circle in a

prayer of affirmation and clo-

sure, just as she had opened

the conference in celebration

and hope.

Mehdi Naimi collage workshop with Judith Siano from Haifa, Israel.

The Closing Ceremony.

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u p c o m i n g e v e n t s

2-DAY WORKSHOP WITH LANI GARITY-GLANVILLE A World of Possibility: Characters, Narratives and Murals (Day 1) Maintaining Possibility (Day 2) Edmonton, AB March 21-22, 2015

This workshop will be a very hands-on puppet making/ action figure making story

telling experience. Day two will involve discussion around positive psychology,

neuroscience research, applying the workshop with diverse cultures and building

community. More detail TBA– check the CATA website for more information as it’s

released.

Cost: Prairie chapter members $75.00/ non-members $100.00

Location: St. Stephen’s College, U of A Campus

c a t a e x e c u t i v e

c o u n c i l 2 0 1 4 - 2 0 1 5

executive president

(BC) Mehdi Naimi

catapresident@gmail.com

vice-president

(BC) Michelle Winkel

catavicepresident@gmail.com

secretary

(MB) Kayla Cardinal

catasecretary@gmail.com

treasurer

(MB) Kayla Cardinal

catatreasurer@gmail.com

directors by-laws (advisor to the board)

(AB) Waqas Yousafzai

catagovernance@gmail.com

partnership development

(BC) Sherry-Lynn Widemark

catapartnershipdevelopment@gmail.com

education & training

(BC) Michelle Winkel

cataeducation@gmail.com

communications

(ON) Haley Toll

catacommunications@gmail.com

membership

vacant

catamembership@gmail.com

committee chairs conference

(ON) Gilda Raimondi

cataconference@gmail.com

registration

(MB) Adriana Leinberger

cataregistrar@gmail.com

social media chair

(BC) Andrea Hrysko

catasocialmedia@gmail.com

advocacy

(MB) Tzafi Weinberg

cataadvocacychair@gmail.com

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f o l l o w u s o n :

Twitter: CATA-art: Andrea Hrysko

Instagram: CATA_photos_atac: Julie Lemelin

Facebook: Canadian Art Therapy Association (Closed Group) Canadian Art Therapy Association (Fan Page)

Linkedin: Canadian Art Therapy Association-l’Association canadienne d’art thérapie

2015 4th Annual MBAT (Mindfulness-Based Art Therapy) Summer Institute with Margaret Jones-Callahan The Centre for Peace, 1825 W 16th Ave., Vancouver, BC Level 1: July14 - 15 Level 2: July 16 - 17 Level 3: July 18 new program

MBAT focuses on cultivating positive social and emotional health, self-management skills,

gratitude and compassion. More than learning to focus attention and simply be, we look at the

transformative power of contemplative art and the awakened heart. Participants explore the

sense fields and embodied presence focusing on Mindfulness of Body and Mindfulness of

Life. Participants apply these through practices of calligraphic brush work, gentle inquiry,

photography, mindful drawing, collage, and painting. Issues explored may include conflicted

emotions, pain management, addiction recovery, anxiety, stress and work place issues. This

course emphasizes Mindfulness for cultivating personal presence in the counselling and

coaching dynamic.

For information or to register: truepnt@yahoo.ca or www.truepnt.ca programs/calendar page.