CPD · 2 days · Locations across Adelaide
Art therapy training in Adelaide
Art Therapy Foundations is a two-day introductory course that builds a solid understanding of how creative processes are used therapeutically. It is run by AkindaCo, a working clinical practice with art therapists on staff, at locations across Adelaide.
Making something is not the same as talking about it
Plenty of practitioners already reach for paper and pens when words run out. What is often missing is the framework underneath: why the image does what it does, what you are actually looking at, where the ethical edges sit, and what separates art therapy from a nice activity that fills the time.
Art Therapy Foundations gives you that framework, and the practical skill to use it.
Course content
What the two days cover
- The theoretical, psychological and ethical foundations of art therapy
- How art-making supports emotional expression, regulation and meaning-making across the lifespan
- Key frameworks from psychotherapy, trauma-informed practice and human development, and how they apply to creative work
- How art therapy differs from both clinical therapy and recreational art, and why that distinction matters ethically
- Practical skill development, with hands-on making rather than description alone
- Reflective activities on the self of the therapist in creative work
Who this art therapy training is for
- Counsellors, psychologists, social workers and occupational therapists who want a creative modality with real theory behind it
- Teachers, school wellbeing staff and youth workers
- Community-sector and disability practitioners
- Anyone curious about art therapy who wants a grounded introduction before committing to a full qualification
You do not need to be able to draw, and you do not need prior art therapy training. This is a foundation course.
How AkindaCo teaches it
Every AkindaCo course has an experiential flavour. You get a workbook that guides you towards a concrete understanding of the fundamental content, case studies, structured reflection on the self of the therapist, and practice of experiential and creative ways of working with complexity. You make things over the two days. That is the point.
Our art therapists work clinically every week, including with children, young people and families, and in Positive Behaviour Support and NDIS contexts. What you learn is what we use.
Who teaches it
Practising clinicians from the AkindaCo team. Our founder, Paula Gillespie-Fotheringham, is an Art Psychotherapist and Adjunct Lecturer at the University of Adelaide. AkindaCo's education program is led by Rana Kökçinar, Senior Psychotherapist, Family Therapist and Education Lead. Meet the full team.
CPD and professional bodies
AkindaCo is affiliated with ANZACATA, the peak professional body for creative arts therapists in Australia, New Zealand and Asia, as well as PACFA, the AASW and the PTPA. Art Therapy Foundations is an introductory professional development course rather than a qualification. If your association needs evidence of attendance in a particular format, tell us before the day.
Where it is held
Locations across Adelaide, including AkindaCo's rooms at 183 Tynte St, North Adelaide, and our Salisbury clinic. The course can also be delivered in-house at your organisation.
Questions
Art therapy training in Adelaide: common questions
When is the next art therapy course in Adelaide?
Dates for the next intake of Art Therapy Foundations are being confirmed. Register your interest and we will tell you before the dates go public.
Do I need to be good at art?
No. The course is about how creative processes work therapeutically, not about artistic skill. Not being able to draw is genuinely irrelevant, and often useful.
Is this a qualification in art therapy?
No. Art Therapy Foundations is a two-day introductory professional development course. It is designed to give you a grounded understanding and practical skills, and it is a good way to find out whether a full qualification is right for you before you commit to one.
How is art therapy different from doing art activities with clients?
That distinction is one of the things the course covers directly. In short, art therapy is grounded in psychotherapeutic theory, works with the process and the relationship rather than the product, and carries ethical obligations that a recreational art activity does not.
Can you run it at our organisation?
Yes. Every AkindaCo course can be delivered in-house and shaped around the team and the client group you actually work with.
Do you run other courses for therapists?
Yes. Family Therapy Foundations is a two-day PACFA-endorsed intensive in systemic practice, and The Therapeutic Use of Genograms is a one-day course. We also run in-service Preschool Boost programs for early childhood educators.
Be first to hear the next dates
Register your interest and we will contact you before the next intake goes public.