Āiotanga: Using trauma-informed art therapy to nurture a Māori identity and bring balance to the self with B Hope/Heleina Waimoana Walton

How does the art of your ancestors inform your therapeutic practice?

This experiential workshop explores the unique healing that can take place when we reconnect with the artmaking of our ancestors and make space to engage in our intergenerational histories.

Taking a foundational approach to the influence of intergenerational resonance on art and mental health, Āiotanga encourages arts therapists to get curious about where they come from, and the historical traumas they are carrying forward, in the name of providing embodied care to others.

Presenters B Hope and Heleina Waimoana Dalton will share their collective research, where pairing trauma-informed arts therapy with Māori art forms such as whatu (weaving) and Kaupapa Māori (traditional practices) fostered the reclamation of B's Māoritanga—and brought healing to her whānau.

Attendees will also be invited to delve into the roots of their own respective family trees via a shared art experiential. There will also be a 30-minute Q&A session. Experience or knowledge of Māori culture is not required.

Learning Objectives

Learning objectives include: - the importance of exploring where one comes from to deliver informed therapeutic care - the role Indigenous connectivity to the land and the self can play in arts therapy - the need for our therapeutic field to value cultural self-discovery, ancestral healing and relational reciprocity in the therapy space.

Presenter bio

No info provided

When: Monday 17 February 2025
NZDT: 1 pm–3 pm
AEDT: 11 am- 1pm
AEST: 10 am – 12 pm
ACDT: 10.30 am-12.30 pm
AWST/HKT/SGT: 8 am–10 am
EST: 7 pm–9 pm Sunday 16 February  
Duration/CPD: 2 hrs
(1 hour - presentation on research, 30mins - Q&A, 30mins - art experiential)
Where: ZOOM
Cost: $35 AUD (+ GST for Australian members)
Open to: All ANZACATA Members
Max: No cap.
Recorded session: No (Privacy Reasons)