The listings on this page will be continually updated as
more sites are discovered;
if you have any links to recommend, please contact the PhotoTherapy
Centre.
• Sites
About PhotoTherapy:
• Sites of Therapists combining both PhotoTherapy
and Therapeutic Photography in their professional practice:
Inner
Essence Photography and Photo Therapy Services is
therapist and photographer Lori DeMarre's site -- discussing
and illustrating her practice "specializing in creating
a safe space for women to be visible in front of the camera
and to explore aspects of themselves through the use of
Photography and PhotoTherapy to help with their self-knowledge
and healing"; also see
a related article about her and her work, in "Artist's
Spotlight";
Marianne
Gontarz York Photography/Phototherapy is the site
of social worker, photographer,
and
gerontologist
Marianne Gontarz York, who has long used PhotoTherapy
to explore memories and feelings (reminiscence and "life
review" work) with older adults. Her photographs
capture the spirit of strong elders (older adults)
living meaningful lives
as well
as the strength and joy of intergenerational ties and
have been published in a number of
professional books and journals in the field of
aging.
Visual
Voices Unlimited is psychotherapist and fine artist,
Lynne Bernay-Roman's site about a curriculum she developed
("Finding Focus Through Photography"),
which is a program intended to "nurture kids' natural
curiosity, a key to long term learning". This curriculum,
along with a Manual sold from the site for implementation
purposes, "uses photography, creative problem-solving
and teamwork to facilitate enhanced awareness of kids'
inner and outer world, while making learning relevant
and fun -- this is a program where empowerment and invaluable
insight happens";
Fotosynthesis
is Finnish Psychologist Lauri Mannermaa's site that
addresses only the "Photographer part" of his
professional life, but he is also using very exciting
and innovative techniques with his therapy clients and
will be adding those components also;
Pictures
and Stories in Therapy and Counseling is one of the
courses explained on this site belonging to Finnish Psychotherapist
and Photographer Ulla Halkola. There is also information
there about the new Association for PhotoTherapy in
Finland, various PhotoTherapy workshops, and much
more. (The site is in Finnish, but
email correspondence
with her can easily be done in English);
Women's
Image Awareness Association is psychotherapist and
holistic healer Rachelle Ferguson's site for showing how
she uses Photography and/or PhotoTherapy to assist women
with improving self image directly through being photographed
(along with, or apart from, direct counseling), "researching
the destructive behaviors and negative consequences that
result from low self-esteem";
•
Sites re: PhotoTherapy with youth / teens / children
(see also: "Grief/Bereavement"
and "Women, including girls"):
PhotoChange
is a commercial site, which is usually not permitted to
"advertise" on these page -- however it appears
to be about "psychotherapy for young people that
uses photographs", so although there is no way to
determine the validity or quality of the work by this
therapist, it is listed here as being possibly worth checking
out further. Homepage states, "PhotoChange helps
your son or daughter two ways: Pictures help your son
or daughter to get "in the door" (re: therapy)
more easily. That's because PhotoChange looks like fun.
Using photographs in therapy is not new. The earliest
use of photographs dates back to the 1850s. Phototherapy
looks like traditional art therapy—but it's not.
In phototherapy, your son or daughter talks about what
the pictures are about, and thus talk about themselves
without knowing it";
• Sites
re: Therapeutic Photography in general (or
educational, cross-cultural, self-exploration work, &
related intentional applications):
Through
a Different Lens -- A Creative Unconventional Approach
to Transformation and Healing is Pam Hale Trachta's
site about how creative tools such as therapeutic photography,
writing and ritual can be used to enhance consciousness,
creativity, learning, communication and well-being.
An
educator and pioneer in the field of therapeutic photography,
[Note: publications at that time
were under "Pam Weaver"] as well
as a photographic writer and artist, Pam has long worked
in
the fields of personal growth and healing -- and often
uses her own experience as a cancer survivor to work
with
people encountering illness, loss or death. She is also
the creator of the "Sand Spirits™ photographic
wisdom and divination cards";
Art
For Your Sake: Healing Dreamscapes for Therapeutic Recovery
is artist Nancy Gershman's site where clients who provide
their own photos and archival material for her to scan,
can commission her to create custom photo-collages for
therapeutic recovery. These "Healing Dreamscapes"
re-tell (and represent visually) the influence of particular
life events and are informed by not only photos, but also
personal remembrances, artwork, and writings. Her site
has examples of both commercial photo-collages created
to celebrate life events in people's life-stories and
transitions, as well as more therapeutic kinds of photo-collages,
often done in conjunction with therapists, clergy, hospice
workers, and other helping professionals. [Weiser
comment: This site really must be seen to fully grasp
the imaginative and effective results -- and recognize
their potential for deeper therapeutic effects beyond
the initial visual impact];
Inner
Light Explorations is part of Neith Doffing's two-part
site about the "blend of energy awareness and portrait
photography that works towards creating images that reflect
one's essence and self-awareness"; the other part
is Sacred
Eye Journeys is about photo-based healing workshops
that "utilize the camera to explore one's own inner
landscape and create a photographic map of symbols to
guide them on their personal journey of self-exploration
through photography. [Unsolicited
Comment by Weiser: The photographs on this site are truly
beautiful];
PhotoVoice:
Social Change Through Photography: PhotoVoice blends
a grassroots approach to photography and social action
by providing cameras to people to amplify their visions
and experience, record and reflect their community's strengths
and problems, promote dialogue about important issues,
and permit them to be catalysts for social action and
change in their own communities. Pages on this site also
include many exciting individual projects, such as: 1)
Multigenerational Linking of Homeless and Marginally
Housed African American Women ("young homeless
women and elderly discussed photographs they had taken
that focused on their current living arrangement and daily
life activities; the sharing of photographs revealed many
commonalities and established mutual respect, exercised
mutual affirmation, and built alliances") -- and
2) Our Lives Through Our Eyes: People with Mental
Illness Educating Providers (enabling people living
with mental illness to educate mental health service providers
about what matters in their lives and encourage community-based
support for people living with mental illness") as
well as the Picture This (Project) (see
listing below);
Share
My World -- The Degradation and Removal of the/a Black
Male: Through photographs and storytelling, this site
by Wayne Dunkley explores the common human experience
of alienation. He explains: "I am a black photographer
who hung over 400 posters of my face in Toronto and Montreal.
I photographed the responses over a four-year period.
I share some of my own experiences of racism to stimulate
viewers to consider prejudice, "otherness,"
and hope for change in their own lives". The site
also provides an ongoing place "where people can
express how racism has shaped their lives, and where visitors
can come to new understanding of the existence and effects
of racism... and reflect on their own role in the presence
of it". The goal of the site is to "challenge
people and make them talk [and think, and feel].... Through
collaborative storytelling and the process of constructing
a new narrative of hope, the site broadens from personal
experiences to consider racism as an element of the human
condition. Viewers' stories are combined with Dunkley's
photographs to create an online community of storytelling.
This effectively broadens the ownership of the issue of
racism. Dunkley summarizes: "At its core this project
is my attempt to make something life-giving from the poison
of racism... [to say, and to show, that] sorrow shapes
my story, but does not own it...";
Photography
as a Healing Art is Photographic Artist and Photo-Journalist
Jan Boydol's page for her "Photography as the Route
to Creativity" workshops which combine viewing and
making photographs with guided creative writing exercises
in journaling -- often in conjunction with Joe Englander's
"Photo Workshops
and Tours" website. (Unsolicited
Weiser comment: The photographs on this site are stunning;
please have a look!);
Photography
as a Healing Practice is a page on Kay Porterfield's
site, which is about creative growth and healing in general;
this page gives information and links for photo-related
aspects;
•
Sites re: Therapeutic Photography with women / girls
(see also: "Cancer" and "Youth/Teens"):
The
Fisher Turk Photo Therapy Method ("Making Peace
with Your Body Through the Eye of the Camera") explains
and illustrates the "Fisher Turk Method of Photo
Therapy", though which Ellen Fisher Turk has long
used photography "to open a way for women to change
how they see themselves and how they feel about their
bodies, by reconciling the difference between who women
think they are and who they see in the photographs. The
photography allows them to see themselves as art -- thereby
using the body, always the object of their shame before,
as an tool for healing". Photos are included on the
site, with comments from some of the women pictured, many
of whom discuss how their photographs have evoked personal
compassion;
Re-enactment
Photo-Therapy is Rosy
Martin's site about significant moments/memories
from an individual's past that are re-enacted
and transformed,
literally or metaphorically through being photographic
reconstruction; Outrageous
Agers is her site about her collaborative
photo and video installation with Kay Goodridge,
which addresses
stereotypes of women and aging and "confronts notions
of the unstable ever-changing body, with images and
texts
that are both defining and defiant";
About-Face:
San Francisco-based non-profit group whose focus is promoting
positive self-esteem in girls and women of all ages, sizes,
races, and backgrounds, through a spirited approach to
media education, outreach, and activism -- and thus combating
negative and distorted images of women in the media;
Beyond
Compare - Women Photographers on Beauty is a commercially-sponsored
but very wonderful internationally-touring photography
exhibition that was created to "inspire dialogue,
move beyond stereotypes, and challenge women to question
their definition of beauty and to challenge the notion
that a woman's beauty can be compared to a standard set
by society. Photos were taken by some of the world's most
reputed female photographers, and speak to he uniqueness
of each artist's interpretation of beauty". All images
were accompanied by an anecdote or quote that explains
the photographer's vision; donations were gathered at
all exhibitions for the National Eating Disorders information
Centre;
Women En Large
is about Laurie Toby Edison's "Fine Art Photographs
of Beautiful and Powerful Women";
•
Sites re: Therapeutic Photography with youth / teens
/ children (see also: "Grief/Bereavement"
and "Women, including girls"):
Youth
In Focus empowers urban teens, through photography,
"to experience their world in new ways and make positive
changes in their lives, explore their creative potential,
to engage them and help them work through what's going
on in their lives";
First
Exposures (FX) is a unique mentoring/photographic
education program for young people in San Francisco sponsored
by SF Camerawork. Students ages 11 - 18 are recruited
from local agencies serving young people with backgrounds
of homelessness or low-income living situations. Mentors
are photographers with a commitment to youth empowerment
through education. "Our goal is not only to help
develop a creative outlet for our students to express
themselves in a safe and supportive environment, but also
to encourage them to grow and become articulate, confident,
and responsible young adults";
Picture
This (Projects) describes a project where a group
of Chicago-based volunteer photographers and journalists
used the power of photography with youth to teach skills
and also encourage their creative expression, self-esteem
and bridge the gap between people of different backgrounds;
Through
the Eyes of a Child: is a program where a dozen
professional photographers become mentors to urban
children by
sharing their
love of photography, with the result that the photographs
that emerge are deeply
communicative and
moving;
The
Artist Inside Program: With the motto of "Finding
the Inner Artist in Incarcerated Youth", this Program
uses photography and other arts to provide these
art students
the
rare
opportunity to use cameras and other art media without
the usual
artistic "rules",
and thus achieve a unique opportunity
for
self-expression that helps them regain a sense of pride and increase their self-esteem.
The Photography
Program has proven to be
therapeutic and transformative, opening doors for self-representation, discussion,
and story
telling in a way that helps the youth gain a feeling of connection, contribution
and
communication that is a necessary part of being human.
The
Five Faces of Kern is a site describing what
happens when a group of "at risk" teenagers
(students with "special needs") were
given one-time-use cameras to create a group of
pictures to reveal an important
part of their world: "What does the world look like
to an "at risk" teenager? Instead of just
wondering, the Arts Council of Kern County, California
decided to
find out. The scheme was simple: Distribute one-time-use
cameras to students with "special needs" in
the county's five school districts. Teach them the
basics
of photography. And challenge each student to create
a group of pictures that reveal an important part
of his
or her world. All participants' work would be included
in a group show, and the top five would win prizes";
"Trans-active" is
a national Project in the U.K. (supported by MENCAP --
the leading charity there working with children and
adults with a learning disability, their parents,
and their carers) that is currently in use by over
100 schools, colleges and other organizations who support
young
people with and without disabilities in transition
and making choices about their future lives. They do
this through accessing and using photography, multi-media
and the internet, to produce multimedia online "passports" for
themselves, which enables them take an active part
in decision-making meetings that affect their lives
-- and their futures. In the Trans-active Project,
young people with and without disability work together,
giving them opportunities to learn to work together
and explore their similarities as well as differences
-- and in the process, making friends and having fun!
Using their passport as a reminder and a communication
bridge, they can easily show people what is important
to them now and in the future, and can greatly assist
the transition process. "Effective transition
means that young people with PMLD (profound and multiple
learning disabilities) are fully involved throughout
transition planning and that consideration is given
to actively accessing mainstream services as well as
specialist services". Additionally, young people
with severe learning disabilities and their
non-disabled peers, are involved in developing an interactive
website for young people with a learning disability;
The
Picture ME Foundation is an organization dedicated
to helping children with disabilities and serious
illnesses
through the use of photography and therapeutic scrapbooking.
It shows clear evidence of the power of photography
to
communicate about things words can't, and as extensions
and witnesses of self. Their Picture ME "Therapeutic
Scrapbook Program" is a combination of "therapeutic
photography" and "therapeutic scrapbooking";
there is also a program called "Special
Kids Photography"
which trains photographers to be more sensitive and alert
to the needs of disabled or seriously ill children;
White
Self, Black Selfshows how children's drawing
and writing on self-created photographs can be used to
explore how society, through its children, looks at issues
of race, and for children to share with one another what
it means to be black or white -- illustrating how "it
is crucial to understand how we see one another";
Literacy
Through Photography is "a school-based community
program that encourages students to find their voice through
photographs and subsequent written investigation of self,
community, family, and dreams, using photography as a
medium of communication". Developed by photographer
and teacher Wendy Ewald, it teaches students self-expression
through creative writing and photography" -- and
training for teachers is also part of the program. (More
about Ewald, on the "Who's
Doing What, Where" page of this site and also
in a summary
article connected to it;
FotoKids
"The Children in Conflict" Program uses
photos taken by adolescents to develop certain key issue
for youth living in communities affected by violence,
and thus promote youth leadership in populations affected
by social exclusion and armed conflict. Breaking the cycle
of poverty through training in visual arts and technology
is offered to students living in difficult economic circumstances
in rural and urban communities of Guatemala and Honduras.
"Placing cameras in the hands of these children is
a very powerful experience. It allows them to claim their
world in a new way and express themselves more fully.
There is a huge correlation between learning a creative
art and becoming excited about learning in general. Photography
then opens the doors for many of these kids to a much
larger sense of self and their potential in the world"
(more about this in an article about this project in the
April
Newsletter of the "ArtHeals" organization;
Inside-Out
Street Youth Photography Project describes what happens
when street youth in Nepal document the difficult circumstances
of their lives by taking photographs to show their lives
as they saw them, not as others may interpret them. What
they photographed was completely up to them, taking photos
that best represented aspects of their life, the highs
and the lows, and they themselves got to choose which
photographs they wanted to have exhibited and which they
didn't. "Through this photography project, they found
a voice, a sense of worth while discovering that people
were genuinely concerned and were listening to their plight";
AJA
Project International empowers refugee and underprivileged
youth through educational programs and to help them create
better opportunities for their future as they develop
valuable vocational, technical, and photography skills.
"Cameras and training were provided to elementary
school children to not only encourage reflection on their
tumultuous lives but also to feel like protagonists rather
than victims";
WarChild's
"Visual Impact Project" is a world-wide
project which encourages children caught up in war to
tell their story through photographs they take themselves.
Single use cameras are distributed to young people who
are encouraged to take photos of the places and people
that are important to them and to portray to other children,
the story of their own lives (by describing their family
and friends, things they like and their hopes and dreams).
"The films are developed and the prints returned
to the children so that they can select their favorite
images. These are exhibited locally before being returned
to the children. Workshops are also given on the basics
of photography. This empowers the children to raise awareness
of the conditions in which they live, while also learning
about children in other countries through their photos;
•
Sites re: Therapeutic Photography with cancer, HIV/AIDS,
& other life-threatening illnesses or traumas; depression,
and other issues:
"I
want to get it off my chest!" -- Photographic Installation
and Virtual Exhibit is the site of photo-based artist
Francine Gagnon powerful photographs and inspiring testimonials
about people's experiences with cancer. Originally just
about breast cancer (in both men and women), the site
now addresses all cancers. Not only is her own work there,
but all viewers are invited to themselves participate
in this cathartic process by submitting their own stories
and/or images; a web-page is then created for each participant's
contribution and thus directly connects with one of the
main goals for Therapeutic Photography --using the camera
as an "activist's tool" to promote healing,
education, and understanding;
Vision
and Voice Project: Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgendered
Folks Journey Through the Fire describes a project
illustrating how photographs can give a tangible voice
to personal narratives of cancer that are often silenced
or marginalized. Photographer and PhotoTherapist Lori
DeMarre assists cancer survivors tell their own visual
story, through co-creating photographic representations
of their own personal journey. Those photographed begin
to see themselves in new ways; once complete, their photographic
voice joins others in an exhibition to be shared with
the larger community, providing education and supporting
the cancer support services of the Seattle Lesbian Cancer
Project;
The
Children's Legacy is Katy Tartakoff's site about her
work using photography to help children suffering from
cancer or burns, and their families -- both in hospital
and at summer camps. There is also a link there about
her photo-activist work with HIV-positive women and children
in Africa, which resulted in a book "Final Breath:
A Love Poem" (see below) [also
note: if trouble is encountered with site-link, contact
her directly];
Final
Breath: A Love Poem is a page on the "Virtual
Voices" website describing a recent project sponsored
by Katy Tartakoff's "The Children's Legacy"
(see above) -- where black and white photographs of African
children from orphanages and villages from Nairobi to
Maasai Mara, Kenya, who were suffering from HIV (and little
hope), were combined with poems and messages into a book,
whose entire proceeds go to help these children. Additionally,
copies of these photos were given to the children's families
and to bring attention to tribal chiefs and local leaders
to the magnitude of the problem of HIV/AIDS in their communities;
Phototherapy
-- Dealing with a childhood trauma is a visual essay
produced for a Master's Degree in Photography, using the
camera to construct the person's response to his father's
death and gain a better understanding of deeply rooted
trauma, as reconstructed through memory;
In
My Skin: A Visual/Photographic Autobiography is Photographer
Jennifer Loshaw's MFA Thesis exhibition, done as a response
to the damage her body (and spirit) has suffered from
being burned as an infant, and "the subsequent feelings
and search for self-identity", while exploring also
the larger concept of physical beauty "which we create,
believing it will identify us" -- and the common
thread of human existence created by the search for it.
The work incorporates both medical images and newly-created
photographs, sequenced as a story-line that depicts the
experience and stressing inner strength and struggle;
A
Long Walk Home: A Story of a Rape Survivor is the
main program of an organization that uses social documentary
and art to capture the reality of violence and trauma.
It documents the journey from sexual assault victim to
sexual assault survivor by means of a multimedia performance
that features poetry, music, photography, West African
dance and modern dance to help educate people about sexual
trauma and healing. "Utilizing the creative process
of making art as itself healing and life-enhancing, the
goals include also helping survivors increase self-awareness,
cope with traumatic experiences, and enjoy the life-affirming
pleasures of artistic creativity;
Depression:
A Visual Journal of Healing & Transformation is
a traveling exhibit about using photographs and journals
on a personal journey with depression, created by two
artists who have "been there" -- and who have
collaborated to create photographs and poems that offer
hope and honors both the pain and the transforming possibility
of depression. Each of the fourteen dramatic, large-scale
black-and-white photographs (depicting a symbolic journey
through depression) is accompanied by a short, experience-based
poem that speaks to a specific aspect of depression: medication,
the mind-body-spirit connection, isolation, hope, the
need for balance, healing, and more. The exhibit includes
educational facts about depression and resources people
can call for help with mental health concerns.
• Photographic Cultural Studies or Photo-based
Research, Visual Sociology/Anthropology, and others (and
some not intentionally for therapeutic purposes, but still
worth mentioning!):
Literacy
Through Photography, encourages students to find their
voice through photographs and written text, using photography
as a medium of communication in classroom settings to
catalyze subsequent written investigation of self, community,
family, and dreams; training for teachers is part of the
program;
Photography:
Access to Sight is about a legally-blind man, who
"photographs to see" (while most people see
to photograph!). The site explains and illustrates the
photographs he takes so that he can see the world around
him;
Fear
for Sale: An example of the amazing photographic explorations
of David Hevey's ongoing journey to "blow the lid
off the disability charity advertising business";
for further readings see Media
and Disability;
Creative
Memories is one of many sites about the hobby of "Scrapbooking";
however some of their ideas and downloadable articles
can also be useful in therapeutic settings; for example
Mizen's "Scrapbook
photo albums are therapeutic for Alzheimer's patients".
This organization describes itself as helping people "Preserve
the past, enrich the present, and inspire hope for the
future through preserving their photographs in albums
they create";
Collected
Visions contains over 200 photo essays exploring how
photographs shape our memories; includes stories and photographs
(and essays inspired by over 2,000 images in family snapshots
archive);
Testing
the Human Spirit shows a beautiful six-year photographic
journey of "an ordinary family living with the extraordinary
challenges of AIDS" -- included here because of the
effects of being photographed and the uses of the photos
beyond just documentation;
The
Century Project shows "a chronological series
of nude photographic portraits of women from the moment
of birth through one hundred years of age, yet this is
much more than a mere developmental chronicle";
Other
People's Pictures is a documentary film about "Vintage
Snapshot Collecting" -- people who buy other people's
family photographs. "Nine obsessive collectors share
an unlikely addiction: snapshots that have been abandoned
or lost by their original owners and are now for sale".
Learn what they look for, and why.
The International
Visual Literacy Association: Association of educators,
artists, and researchers dedicated to the principles of
visual literacy, for the purpose of providing education,
instruction and training in modes of visual communication
and the application of the concepts of visual literacy
to individuals, groups, organizations, and to the public
in general;
The
International Visual Sociology Association: The visual
study of society, culture, and social relationships, and
uses of visual images, to foster the development and use
of still photographs, film, video, and electronically
transmitted images in sociology and other social sciences
and related disciplines and applications;
Children
as Photographers describes a research project where
children took photographs and then an attempt was made
by outside ("external") observers to analyze
four topics: What do children take photographs of?; What
do children like/dislike about photographs?; Why do children
take photographs?; and What do children intend to do with
the photographs that they take? This kind of research
of course brings up all kinds of questions about efficacy
and whether "outsider-interpretation" is actually
even possible [Weiser comment: this
is an example of research attempted by those who think
such things are actually measurable, which is itself debatable!];
•
Miscellaneous general-public "photo-based activities"
which are spontaneously therapeutic, even if not originally
intended for that purpose:
"Tribute
to American Spirit" PhotoQuiltis a non-commercial
site that Kodak set up to provide a place where anyone
of any age could share personal snapshots (and accompanying
words) in response to the events of 9/11; although death
and grief and mourning are all present on this giant "patchwork
quilt" in cyberspace, the overall feeling communicated
by not just viewing these photos, but also the actively
healing act of sharing them, is that of sympathy, support,
courage, and hope for the future;
Ground
Zero (Photo)Quilt is a 90-inch square quilt made by
Lois Jarvis, conceived of in the days following the events
of 9/11. The center of the quilt was composed of photographs
(printed on fabric) of over 700 images of people who perished
at the site of the World Trade Center she downloaded from
the CNN site starting just a few days after the event.
Originally stating that she did not know at first why
she felt so strongly that she should make it, she shares,
"now that it is done I am finding the answer to why
I felt such a strong urge to make it: I made it to be
viewed by other people, and to somehow touch them. I hope
it will remind everyone that the loss of the buildings
and their material content was not the important event
that day [but rather] the people who all perished that
day, who are the important things to remember";
