Digital art with educational and therapeutic functions is, for us, an exciting new frontier, just as compelling as the areas we’re more familiar with (… gaming? ;D). In one way or another, it’s an additional and incredibly valuable tool for engaging in digital social work and online volunteering.

COVID seems to play a role in everything (and it would be strange if it didn’t). Starting in the post-pandemic period, even the world of art therapy began to grow and establish itself primarily online, using virtual and digital tools. Thanks to Pitch Perfect and the work of Stichting Art. 1, we are increasingly drawn to the world not so much of words, but of images and expressive drawing, especially through free (or nearly free) online software and platforms.

Now, it’s true that our project partner works primarily in the field of Artivism, which is a slightly different sphere, or at least has different aims (still educational and civic, but not exactly therapeutic… at least not directly). But we, as we approach the development of the Pitch Perfect card deck from the perspective of counseling, tutoring, and psychological services, couldn’t help but delve deeper into and reflect on the key concepts of the art-therapeutic universe.

Especially because, in recent years and certainly in part due to COVID, digital and online art therapy has gained increasing attention and a significant presence, even among those outside the field, thanks to its ability to adapt to the virtual world and make therapeutic support accessible to those who cannot attend in-person sessions (and thus… coming very close to what we’re truly interested in).

To put it simply, what is digital art therapy?

In essence, it is an art-therapeutic approach based on the use of digital devices and creative software – such as drawing apps, virtual collages, or 3D modeling programs – to explore emotions and internal processes, or even "just" for self-affirmation, self-expression, and to "tell" a part of ourselves. Unlike traditional art therapy, which uses physical materials like paper, paints, and clay, digital art therapy involves, well, virtual tools. Some examples? Procreate is perhaps the most widely used. Then there's Aggie.io (which we find very, very interesting and very, very useful), Artweaver, and so on. Unfortunately, as in the case of Procreate, they aren't always completely free.

In one way or another, digital art therapy has preserved, and perhaps even enhanced, the core methodology of art therapy: using the creative process to help people of all ages express, represent, mitigate, and resolve their emotions, but also to develop social skills, improve self-esteem, and reduce stress. We are reflecting, also through these new tools and this new lexicon, on how much artistry can be found in EduGaming or Virtual Role Play, for instance by addressing the "creation of the avatar," that is, one's character, in games like MMORPGs or even simply single-player RPGs.

Lastly, we highly recommend visiting this project and its outcomes: https://artyproject.eu, an Erasmus+ project funded by the Romanian National Agency, which is helping us a great deal to learn a little more about the broad method of digital art in contexts ranging from therapeutic to educational, to formative, for both young people and adults.