While working in his Red Book, Jung’s use of art materials provided a deliberate and active engagement with the material world. His creative life opened the gates for the unconscious through dialogues with inner figures, and a connection with the deepest parts of his psyche.

In this lecture, I will briefly show how Jung’s clinical views laid the foundation for the eventual development of art therapy and the expressive arts. By grounding theory in image, I will consider how Jung’s unique structure of the psyche, and some of his most challenging ideas, can be more easily accessible through actively engaging with art materials and allowing for the spontaneous images to become visible. Finally, I will also consider the compelling question of whether or not Jung’s pictures are art or images meant for psychic transmutation.

Rather than emphasizing the interpretation of the final image, Jungian art therapy brings a preference to the lived process of engaging with the unconscious through the making of and engaging with spontaneous images that transport healing contents into consciousness. This lecture is vital for anyone who is interested in the intersection between the history and theory of C. G. Jung and the direct experience of the making of personal images.

Please bring a journal or blank sheets of paper with oil crayons and watercolors. If this is not possible, your choice of colorful drawing materials will also work.