For my free choice assignment I chose to use a basket making technique called coiling. This is a process that I learned in a fibers class as an undergraduate student, and have returned to throughout the years. The motions are repetitive and soothing and once mastered can be applied to a variety of materials and a versatility of form. The baskets themselves feel like soft, comfortable containers. I have made a variety of small baskets during Covid19 using thread or string, and thin wire. The inspiration behind these baskets has been a desire for safety, and in creating them I have created small nests that serve as spaces of comfort and protection. Because I have used this process, both during Covid19 and in other stressful times in my life, I thought that it would be appropriate for adults suffering from anxiety. The repetitive motion is kinesthetic, which promotes healing through the increasing or
decreasing of the client’s arousal or energy through involvement with the kinesthetic action (Hinz, 2019). The repetitive action, which in this case is the process of wrapping and weaving, provides stimulation or a discharge of energy. This process is one of slow movement, which will evoke soothing emotions in this case, easing tension and anxiety (Hinz, 2019). It is also one that requires focus and attention to detail, which provides distance from the anxiety as well as a sense of control. The baskets themselves offer holding which may promote feelings of containment and relief, as well as comfort and safety.
References
Hinz, L.. (2019). Expressive therapies continuum: A framework for using art in therapy. Routledge.