Journal 6
Found Objects
Population: Children
Diagnosis: OCD and Anxiety Disorders
I struggled with creating a sculpture from found objects this week. I wanted to use things that had little meaning to me but none of them sparked my interest. In the end, I used a mixture of nails and screws, jar lids, random hardware, embroidery floss, and pins all sealed together with hot glue. As I pushed myself to create something I became more and more frustrated. I usually create out of a place of inspiration and spontaneity. I have used found object collage and sculpture many times but it has always been accompanied by play or inspired by a specific object.
Booker discusses a more structured approach to using found objects in art therapy which may have helped me (2010). In the directive, the client is asked to bring something from home or from outside of the therapy room that they “associate or identify with” and bring it in to then talk about the object’s connection to themselves with the therapist (p. 26). They can then use it in or alongside their artmaking (p.26). I think I pushed myself very hard to make something out of nothing rather than using an object as an inspiration which may have supported the flow of my own artmaking.
The population I chose to look into using this material with is children with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). In my view, the material is almost completely opposite to something that would seem natural to use with this diagnosis. OCD involves both obsessions (“persistent thoughts, urges or images that are intrusive and unwanted”) and compulsions (“repetitive behaviors or mental acts” that are driven by a response to the obsession) according to the DSM V (2013 p. 129). Bat Or & Megides discuss the “four central aspects” of using found objects in art-making. The two of these I see utilizing with this population are “the freedom from aesthetic conventions” and “humor and playfulness” (p. 2016 p.9). Already bound by internal rules and processes of control, I would work with these child clients on the play and more specifically making something out of nothing. Or simply playing with materials. My goals would be surrounding making art that allows for a departure from the potentially rigid artmaking that can accompany OCD and move towards developmentally appropriate play. Found objects could support this shift due to the fact that they in and of themselves are “free from aesthetic conventions.” They have little purpose and do not have a context attached to them other than that that the artist or client imagines or determines. This is different than using conventional art materials which may have “rules” of how to use them.
References
American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). Washington, DC: Publisher.
Bat Or, M., & Megides, O. (2016). Found Object/Readymade Art in the Treatment of Trauma and Loss. Journal of Clinical Art Therapy, 3(1), 1-30.
Booker, J. (2010). Found Objects in Art Therapy. Art Therapy, 15(1), 25-35.
