School of Creative
Industries
Yau Gee Lam
Prior to her MA Art Therapy programme, Yau Gee Lam graduated from Singapore Management University with a Bachelor in Social Sciences majoring in Psychology and Arts and Cultural Management. Gee's personal experience of healing through the arts has led her to combine her passion in the arts with her interest in psychology. In her clinical practice, Gee has worked with older adults in a nursing home and also adolescent girls with interpersonal trauma living in an out-of-home placement. Gee is interested in integrating trauma-informed care and art therapy to create a safe space for self expression, exploration of personal trauma and for youths to engage with art in a fun and relaxing way.
Work
My Life’s Journey Becoming An Art Therapist
Mixed media
50 x 180 cm
2021
My Life’s Journey Becoming An Art Therapist narrates the transformations in her life and journey towards becoming an art therapist. Viewed from the right to the left, the scroll reveals her emotional ups and downs through the use of the window of tolerance graph and illustrations. Gee invites you to scan the QR code on the scroll for more information about the illustrations and experience the power of art as a platform for inexpressible feelings and emotions and personal insight. Her personal journey has helped develop her empathic understanding and attunement to the people around her. As she begins this new chapter in life as an art therapist, she hopes to continue to influence and be influenced by others through art.
Thesis abstract
Trauma-informed framework and art therapy: a qualitative single case study of a female adolescent living in out-of-home placement
With growing research done on interpersonal trauma, there is a growing understanding of the impact of early childhood abuse and neglect on children and how it affects them later on in life. This led to the establishment of trauma-informed care and framework which provides valuable information to guide practitioners in their interventions and interactions with clients. This thesis attempts to incorporate trauma-informed care and framework in art therapy interventions to gain a deeper understanding of its value through practitioner-based research. Through the use of a qualitative single case study it is found that trauma-informed care helps in understanding a client's behaviour in art therapy sessions. It provides insights on suitability and benefits of art materials and art processes for the client, and the trauma-informed framework guides the intervention and responses of the art therapist.