When Creativity Meets Clinical Work: Overcoming Barriers in Counseling Supervision

By Jen Ackerson, LPC, ATR-BC, ATCS

Art therapists are trained in two worlds: the psychological and the creative. We are counselors and artists. We navigate deep emotional waters with our clients while also engaging them in painting, sculpture or collage. That blend drew many of us to this work, but it can also lead to identity struggles, especially when it comes to how we’re supervised and supported in our roles.

I’ve supervised art therapists and have been supervised by people who did and did not understand art therapy. I’ve spent the last few years studying how these supervision experiences shape the way art therapists see themselves. The patterns raise important questions not only for art therapists but for the wider counseling field: How do we support clinicians whose training and identity may differ from ours? How can counseling supervision make space for the whole person and the whole professional?

The Dual Heritage of Art Therapy

Although art therapy has long straddled two worlds, this blending of counseling and visual art is part of its strength. But it also can be hard to explain, especially in clinical spaces that expect traditional roles. This duality means art therapists often feel split. In some settings, we are expected to be counselors first and art therapists second, or not art counselors at all. In other settings, we are brought in to “do the art stuff” but are not necessarily included in clinical decision-making. These tensions are prevalent not only in job roles but also in the way we’re supervised.

Supervision Without a Mirror

Many art therapists receive supervision from professionals not trained in art therapy. While these supervisors often provide strong clinical support, they may not fully understand how creativity functions as a core therapeutic process. This can make art therapists feel like they need to translate their work into someone else’s language, or worse, edit out the parts of the creative counseling process that feels most authentic to them.

As I explore this tension in my dissertation research, I notice how much art therapists long for supervision that reflects who they are — not just what they do. They want to feel seen not only as clinicians but also as creative counselors. That doesn’t mean every supervisor needs to be an artist. But it does mean being open to different ways of knowing, making space for metaphor and image alongside case notes, and offering a mirror that reflects the whole person sitting across from you.

The Need for Models and Conversation

While art therapists have distinct needs, the bigger issue is one that touches every corner of counseling: Many supervision models don’t reflect the full range of how counselors work. Most are based on talk therapy traditions with little room for creative, embodied or culturally specific approaches. For art therapists, this often means cobbling together support systems or feeling pressured to choose between being an artist or a counselor.

We need to expand what supervision can look like for all of us, including models that leave space for multiple identities, ways of knowing and ways of healing. We need conversations that welcome different backgrounds and supervision spaces that allow counselors to fit in and show up fully.

Tips for Supervising Creatives in a Counseling Setting

Supervision is not only about skills and case notes. It’s about helping people feel seen, supported and able to bring their full selves into the counseling process. Here are some tips supervisors can use when working with art counselors:

• Define Supervision Needs: Ask your supervisees what kind of reflection helps them feel most grounded and whole in their work. Traditional talk-based case consultation may not be sufficient.
• Trust the Creative Process: Support what the process reveals. Art therapists, like many creative professionals, may benefit from using metaphor or symbolism or even creating something during supervision. 
• Acknowledge Identity Tensions: Validate your supervisee by acknowledging that their work is sometimes misunderstood in traditional counseling spaces and reinforce its value.
• Explore Curiosity Over Expertise: Ask questions that invite stories so you can learn together. When supervising outside your modality, you may find curiosity is often more powerful than authority. 

Whether or not you supervise art therapists, this conversation has relevance across counseling disciplines. We all work with colleagues whose paths, training and identities are shaped by intersecting roles. The more we can make room for those intersections in supervision, the more fully our supervisees and their clients can thrive.

Jen Ackerson, LPC, ATR-BC, ATCS, is a board-certified art therapist, licensed professional counselor and counselor educator in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She is completing her PhD in counselor education and supervision at Waynesburg University in Pennsylvania, researching how art therapy supervisors use artmaking in supervision.

Note: Opinions expressed and statements made in this blog do not necessarily represent the policies or opinions of ACA and its editors.