School of Creative
Industries
Claire Joanne Haberer
Previously from the financial sector, Claire decided to pursue her interest in psychology and art, attaining a certification in counselling skills and a postgraduate diploma in counselling using the arts.
Claire believes in the benefits of employing the arts for self-expression through the incorporation of vibrant colours and tactile materials in her creations.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, she volunteered as a counsellor on a crisis line for young people. Later, during her time in LASALLE's MA Art Therapy programme, she worked with adolescent females in a residential home, young people and adults diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder and other mental health disorders within a private practice setting.
Work
What catches?
Wood, yarn, crystals
67 x 60 x 60 cm
2024
What catches? embraces Claire’s art therapy journey through the concept of duality.
Crystals shine like morning dew on a spider’s web. While delicate and intricate, the web serves as a tool for capturing – casting a web is creating a structure and seeing what catches in it. What is consumed or discarded?
There is a duality between creativity and practicality. The creation of a web requires constant readjustment, repair and rebalance. The web sits in a circular frame, which represents inclusivity and unity – a wholeness embracing any imperfections inside.
Thesis abstract
Addressing executive functioning skills of a female adolescent in Singapore with cognitive behavioural informed art therapy
This thesis is a qualitative, practitioner-based inquiry exploring how art therapy might be informed by Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) when supporting a female adolescent with executive functioning (EF) difficulties in Singapore. The paper gathers findings from a single case study that looks at how techniques such as problem-solving, identifying maladaptive thoughts and behaviours, practising new skills and role modelling apply to 13 art therapy sessions within a private practice.
CBT can contribute to setting goals, offer clarity in determining art directives and establish rituals providing structure, thereby assisting to establish a therapeutic frame. Results reveal that integrating CBT with psychodynamic art therapy creates an additional opportunity to practice and enhance EF skills through visual metaphors, art-making and the development of an attuned relationship.