Bonsai as a group art therapy intervention among traumatized youth in KwaZulu‐Natal

Abstract

Bonsai can be used as an art therapy tool during psychodynamic therapeutic interventions maintenance of good mental health.Bonsai is generally considered to be relaxing and is practiced by many to relieve stress and as an expression of art. The aim was to establish bonsai as an art therapy tool to overcome trauma. Fifteen isiZulu-speaking traumatized youths in a remote area in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa participated in a qualitative study that investigated their narratives around experienced trauma and sense of hopelessness. Materials in the form of bonsai, tools, wire, and pots were supplied, and six sessions were held. Results indicated that the participants experienced an improvement in their mental state, which was attributed by them to the practice of the art of bonsai. Bonsai can be beneficial as a healing medium mental health tool when employed as art therapy and can be promoted in a group setting in potential rehabilitation situations.

The Relationship between Sustainable Built Environment, Art Therapy and Therapeutic Design in Promoting Health and Well-Being

“…Lee et al [46] believe that integrating the ecological environment into art psychotherapy can play a vital role in improving mental health, such as stress, depression, anxiety, and aggression. Bonsai can be used as a therapeutic material to promote AT, which can overcome trauma in psychodynamic therapy interventions and maintain good mental health for patients [47]. AT provides a model that not only treats art materials as a language to create expression space, but also uses art production as a valuable form of expression, and then maintains it in a broader context expression to stimulate the process of collaborative design [48].…”