Joanna Clyde Findlay, M.A., May '02
Madam President, esteemed faculty, fellow graduating class of 2002, our families and friends.
One of the things immersion in our studies at Phillips has taught us all is that none of our
achievements stand alone. The recognition our efforts receive today could not have been possible
without the larger systems around us - our teachers’ demands on one side, our work and worry in between
and the support of our families and friends behind us.
First of all I want to thank our MFT faculty for
their rich and stimulating teaching the core of our training as psychotherapists . . . and of course, to
thank our Art Therapy department faculty for the color and texture of their “living curriculum”, but above all,
their enthusiasm and passion for us to learn. I believe, as a group, we have been privileged to
be exposed to a dynamic, innovative and pioneering program that has enriched us as individuals and as
therapists. The invaluable support of our families and friends should also be acknowledged for their
patience and encouragement during 2 years of intense study, preoccupation and stress.
The honor of being asked to represent this special category of graduating MFT and Art Therapy students,
to me, begs the question:
“What have we been learning to do that is different from our MFT colleagues?” Well, apart from coming to school
laden with bags, portfolios, and extra meals, leaving classrooms lined with curious, colorful “creations”, or
surviving 11 hour days of study - I believe as Art therapists we have been introduced to an additional
resource in the therapists’ tool box. In practical terms, this may be pastels, markers and clay. But it goes
beyond that to a recognition of a “way of relating” to ourselves, and those with whom we do therapy.
One could say that we have been given the wisdom of symbols, the narrative of an evolving image,
the imprint of intuition and the language of color to help us in our work.
If this all sounds a little unusual, it is not. From what I perceive from our faculty,
my peers and friends, to be an Art Therapist
one does not need to be an artist or wedded to a particular theoretical orientation. But one might benefit
from being able to accept that some experience cannot be communicated with words alone, and thus be open to
“visual” knowing. So, as a group, this year’s MFT and Art Therapy graduating class, with symbol and color, want
to show you a “snap shot” of ourselves with this mandala - all of us very different, but individuals who have
traveled together on this part of our journey and who will continue on our different ways, forever influenced by
our time together at Phillips.
Life is a constant process of looking back, reflecting, learning and moving forward.
We created this visual representation of a mandala as a symbol for our individual journeys
and our unique path together in the art therapy program at Phillips Graduate Institute.
All of the sections in this mandala systemically affect each other and come together to
represent a transformation process and a symbol of wholeness.
We have continued along this
path together for the past 2 years. In the second year of the program our first day of class
was on the tragic day of September 11. We all came to Phillips on that day confused, wide eyed
and full of emotions, knowing that being surrounded by fellow therapists and the power of art
therapy is where we needed to be. When words get in the way and emotions blur all rationale,
art can be a form of communication. Image making can give a voice to unspoken words and it is
used increase awareness and understanding in the brain and balance in the body. Throughout the
last 2 years we have embarked on an intense values discovery at PGI. Our values guide our visions,
hopes and dreams for the future. It has been a process of self-discovery on many different levels,
scholarly, spiritually, ethnically and culturally. We were introduced to a wide range of adjunctive
mind body tools to art therapy such as Chi, guided imagery, mindful meditation, mandalas and
psychoneuroimmunology. We shared our diverse clinical experiences together, from working with
delinquent adolescents to terminally ill children in a hospital. We also shared our personal growth
through our own art work we created as individuals and as a cohesive group. The experience of being
invited into someone’s life as a therapist has made us cry, laugh and learn to love and really
appreciate the present moments in life. I have emerged from my experiential journey in the art
therapy and Marriage and Family Therapy program at Phillips with a new language and a wider lens
to view life. Working in the field of service to others and integrating the valuable power of art
therapy has been and will continue to be a profound therapeutic experience. I am so thankful and
appreciative for the knowledge I have gained, the experiences I have had and the people that have
supported me in my journey. Lastly, I have learned to embrace the philosophy of global interdependence.
Strive to help one another because we are all affected by each other. I leave you with this quote by Ghandi,
“Be the change you wish to see to see in the world!”
Sanie Andres, M.A., May '03
I recently returned from a trip to San Francisco and while I was there, I had an opportunity to
travel downtown a couple of nights. Each time I took the BART back to the hotel, I noticed a
boy who was no older than 12-years-old walking up and down the cars. He had a balloon hat on
his head and was selling balloon animals and the like. It was nearly Midnight and he was sitting
waiting for this final train to reach the last stop where he lived in Milbrae. As he walked by,
his eyes were red from the late hour and he looked weighed down by the bag on his back. He sat
down a few rows behind me and I noticed him hang his head in exhaustion. My traveling companions
and I talked about this young man and listed a variety of reasons for his entrepreneurship, both
positive and negative. I didn’t get a chance to talk to that young man, but I did comment on how
much heart he put into what he was doing, good or bad.
I paused then to reflect on the journey that I have taken to get to this point and the amount of
heart that I and my fellow graduates have invested into this experience. For many of us, our journey
revolved around our personal growth; for others it was a revitalization of our passion for knowledge.
Many nights were spent in front of a computer screen or with fingers rubbing pastel onto paper. We spent
countless cell phone minutes deciphering syllabi and reminding each other of due dates. Above all, it
was an experience that has brought us closer to each other and more intimate with our “selves”.
Through the tutelage of our art therapy instructors, not only did we learn another treatment modality,
we learned another way of thinking and speaking. We learned how to walk into our client’s artwork, look
around with them and explore the possibilities for change. I have always thought in images, but I
learned to conceptualize through imagery and art. I discovered the power in using the art’s metaphor
and it’s adaptability for a variety of needs and challenges. As a cohort, we were under the guidance of
our field’s most experienced and talented art therapists. We entered with apprehension and were inspired
by the words of Shirley Riley, “I am an art therapist”.
Now, like the boy who sat in the back of that train in San Francisco, we each approach our final destination.
We can set our bags down and pause to reflect. We sit surrounded by family and friends who supported and
sustained us through these two years, without whom our journey would have been a lot less fulfilling. As
we hang our heads in that same image of exhaustion, we will awake to a new day filled with possibilities and
opportunities. We entered the train doors as classmates and walk onto the platform as colleagues and friends
leaving this terminal with our hearts and our minds anxiously awaiting what lies ahead.
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