Neubronner Samantha Jean
About
Samantha is a multidisciplinary artist who is curious and fascinated by the possibilities of materials in art-making.
With a background in illustration and education, Samantha’s art therapy practice and identity seeks to explore existential issues and the deeper philosophical, psychological engagement we have with the world around us.
Materials as co-therapists: An exploration of art mediums for individual art therapy in a palliative care setting in Singapore
The aim of this qualitative, practitioner-based, reflective account of my clinical practice was to examine the benefits of the bespoke application of materials in art therapy with individuals in a palliative ward in a community hospital in Singapore.
The research highlights the importance of art materials in the triangular relationship between the therapist, the client and art, and challenges the power dynamics within the therapeutic triad. This study found that the client-centred use of media and materials can define the direction for therapeutic interventions. It also provides new opportunities for expression to contain and extend the therapeutic space.
It acknowledges materials as co-therapists, rather than tools, that enhances the therapeutic alliance between client and therapist.
Letter from a Young Therapist
Letter from a Young Therapist combines text and graphics in the form of a visual diary, reflecting the lived realities of an art therapist in training. Blurring the lines between theory and practice, the work captures the uncertainties, questions and quiet revelations that emerge in the therapeutic encounter by a young therapist.
This piece grapples with the tension of being ‘a good enough therapist’ for clients navigating the fragility of life’s final chapters and explores questions about identity.
Professional practice
Samantha completed her clinical internship across a range of palliative care settings, including hospices and community hospitals. In these contexts, she collaborated with multidisciplinary teams to develop and facilitate art therapy programmes for patients, caregivers and healthcare staff, working across both individual and group formats.
Alongside her clinical practice, Samantha has exhibited her work in various art exhibitions and presented at the Creative Arts Therapies Symposium 2025 and at the Singapore Palliative Care Conference 2026.
She contributed to local discourse on art therapy through her article 'Navigating the emotional terrain of palliative care: An art therapy trainee’s reflections', and hopes to remain engaged in exploration of materiality in art making, with a particular interest in process-based and present-centred approaches.
Creative Arts Therapies Symposium 2025
Presented and conducted a workshop titled 'Painting with Clay- novel applications of media with seniors'. This symposium serves as the nation’s first inclusive and interdisciplinary platform for professional exchange, community engagement and the advancement of the creative arts therapies in Singapore.
Singapore Palliative Care Conference 2026
Singapore Palliative Care Conference (SPCC) is a biennial conference that brings together a community of healthcare professionals, community service providers, industrial partners, educators, caregivers and volunteers, for a rich learning and networking experience.
Navigating the emotional terrain of palliative care: An art therapy trainee’s reflections
Journal of Creative Arts Therapies, November 2025, Issue: Vol.20, No.2
Clinical internship
Anandi Mehra
Chuang Ting-Yun
Val Wai
Tan Shu Hui, Rachel
Liu Xiaoyu
Enya Tay En-Ya
