120 Powerful Art Therapy Exercises to Inspire Healing and Creativity
Art therapy is a powerful tool for self-discovery, emotional healing, and creative expression. Whether you’re looking to process your emotions, boost your self-esteem, or simply engage in a mindful activity, these 120 exercises are designed to help.
Below, you’ll find different categories, each with 5–10 exercises to guide you on your journey.
I really hope you will have fun looking through the list of 120 Art Therapy exercises and try out some of these exercises at home.
I was inspired by a popular list of 100 art therapy activities originally posted by the Nursing School Blog in 2011. After seeing the impact it had, I decided to create my own updated list, drawing on both the original ideas and new, current insights into art therapy.
It was important to me to also add exercises that focus on our mental health regarding the use of social media: with exercises that focus on addiction, fear of missing out and perception. You’ll find social media exercises in the last category (22), with exercises 106-120, I truly hope they will be useful to you!
Please keep in mind that I am simply mentioning materials for each exercise to inspire you. Feel free to use any material that you feel drawn to.
Enjoy the tasks and try out different things. And if you like, leave a comment to let us know which was your favourite exercise!
Greetings, Anike
Let’s get started!
1. Self-Portraits: Exploring Identity and Emotions
1. Emotional Self-Portrait
Create a self-portrait that represents how you feel in the present moment. Use colors, shapes, and lines to express your emotions rather than focusing on realistic details. Materials: Acrylics, colored pencils, pastels, or digital drawing tools.
2. Mirror Reflection Drawing
Sit in front of a mirror and draw what you see. Instead of focusing on perfection, allow yourself to capture the essence of your expression. Notice how your perception shifts as you draw. Materials: Pencil, charcoal, or watercolors.
3. Inner vs. Outer Self
Create two self-portraits: one representing how others see you and one portraying how you feel inside. Compare the two and reflect on the differences. Materials: Mixed media, collage, or sketching materials.
4. Past, Present, Future
Draw yourself in three stages of life: as a child, your present self, and how you imagine yourself in the future. Reflect on your growth and aspirations. Materials: Watercolors, colored pencils, or markers.
5. Self-Portrait Through Objects
Instead of drawing your face, create a composition of symbols and objects that represent your personality, emotions, and experiences. Materials: Collage, paint, or digital media.
Pin these images for later ↴
2. Journaling and Art: Combining Words and Images
6. Visual Gratitude Journal
Draw or paint something you are grateful for every day for a week. It could be a person, an experience, or a small moment that brought you joy. Materials: Sketchbook, watercolors, or markers.
7. Word Collage
Cut out words from magazines that resonate with you and arrange them into a collage that represents your current thoughts and emotions. Materials: Magazines, glue, scissors, and a journal.
8. Stream-of-Consciousness Doodling
Write freely for five minutes without stopping. Then, use doodles and colors to enhance the emotions or images that emerged from your writing. Materials: Pen, paper, and colored pencils.
9. Affirmation Art
Write an empowering affirmation (e.g., “I am strong,” “I am enough”) and illustrate it with colors, symbols, and textures that make the words come alive. Materials: Paint, brush pens, or digital tools.
10. Letter to Your Younger Self
Write a letter to your younger self and illustrate the emotions, memories, or advice you would share. Materials: Ink, watercolor, or mixed media.
3. Connecting with Nature: Art Inspired by the Outdoors
11. Leaf and Flower Printmaking
Gather leaves and flowers, coat them in paint, and press them onto paper to create beautiful natural imprints. Materials: Natural objects, acrylic paint, and paper.
12. Nature Mandala
Collect small natural objects like stones, twigs, and leaves to create a circular mandala pattern. This meditative practice connects you with nature’s balance. Materials: Natural objects and a flat surface.
13. Sketching Outdoors
Go outside and draw what you see. Focus on shapes, textures, and colors rather than perfect accuracy. Materials: Sketchbook, pencils, and watercolors.
14. Earth Painting
Use natural pigments like soil, charcoal, and flower petals to create an artwork directly on paper or canvas. Materials: Found natural items and paper.
15. Wind Drawing
Place a paper outside and let the wind move drops of ink or watercolor across the page. Reflect on how nature interacts with your creation. Materials: Ink, watercolor, and lightweight paper.
4. Expressing Emotions Through Abstract Art
16. Color My Emotion
Assign different colors to different emotions and create an abstract painting reflecting your current mood. Materials: Acrylics, watercolors, or pastels.
17. Music-Inspired Painting
Listen to a piece of music and let it guide your brushstrokes. Express the rhythm, tempo, and emotion through colors and lines. Materials: Paint, markers, or ink.
18. Anger Release Scribbling
Take a blank sheet and scribble freely with strong, bold strokes to release frustration and tension. Materials: Charcoal, markers, or pastels.
19. Emotional Finger Painting
Use your fingers instead of brushes to create a tactile connection with the paint, allowing emotions to flow onto the canvas naturally. Materials: Acrylics or tempera paint.
20. Freeform Intuitive Art
Without planning, start drawing or painting whatever comes to mind. Let your subconscious guide you. Materials: Any art medium of choice.
Pin these to your Pinterest board ↴
5. Mandala Art for Mindfulness and Relaxation
21. Freehand Mandala Drawing
Draw a mandala intuitively, starting from the center and working outward. Let the patterns and shapes flow naturally. Materials: Pen, colored pencils, or markers.
22. Coloring Mandalas
Use pre-drawn mandalas and color them mindfully, focusing on relaxation and intention. Materials: Printable mandalas, colored pencils, or gel pens.
23. Nature-Inspired Mandala
Create a mandala using only elements from nature, such as leaves, petals, and stones, arranged in a circular pattern. Materials: Natural elements and a flat surface.
24. Emotion Mandala
Assign colors and patterns to different emotions and create a mandala that represents your current state of mind. Materials: Paint, markers, or digital drawing tools.
25. Group Mandala Art
Collaborate with friends or family to create a large mandala, each contributing their own designs and colors. Materials: Large paper, paint, or markers.
6. Art for Mindfulness and Meditation
26. Breathing with Brushstrokes Synchronize your brushstrokes with your breathing, creating smooth, flowing lines to enhance mindfulness. Materials: Watercolors, ink, or pastels.
27. Labyrinth Drawing
Draw a labyrinth pattern and slowly trace it with your finger or pencil, focusing on each movement. Materials: Pencil, fine liner, or digital drawing tablet.
28. Slow Motion Drawing
Set a timer and draw as slowly as possible, paying attention to every detail and movement. Materials: Pencil, charcoal, or ink.
29. Pattern Repetition
Create a repetitive pattern using dots, lines, or shapes, allowing the process to bring relaxation. Materials: Markers, fine liners, or colored pencils.
30. Guided Visualization Drawing
Listen to a guided meditation and illustrate the images or sensations that come to mind. Materials: Sketchbook, soft pastels, or acrylics.
7. Symbolism and Archetypes in Art Therapy
31. Personal Totem Creation
Design a personal totem that includes symbols representing your strengths and personality. Materials: Clay, paper, or wood.
32. Spirit Animal Drawing
Illustrate an animal that you feel connected to or that represents your current state of mind. Materials: Colored pencils, ink, or watercolor.
33. Power Symbol Mandala
Create a mandala incorporating personal power symbols and sacred geometry. Materials: Acrylics, colored pencils, or digital tools.
34. Archetype Collage
Choose an archetype (e.g., healer, warrior, dreamer) and create a collage that reflects its characteristics and how it relates to your life. Materials: Magazines, glue, and canvas.
35. Storytelling Through Symbols
Tell a short story using only symbols and abstract imagery to convey emotions and meaning. Materials: Ink, pastels, or mixed media.
8. Exploring the Senses Through Art
36. Texture Rubbing
Place different textured materials under your paper and rub over them with crayons to create unique patterns. Reflect on how textures affect your emotions.
Materials: Paper, crayons, textured surfaces.
37. Scent-Inspired Painting
Smell different essential oils or spices and paint whatever images or emotions come to mind. This exercise is not only special among children, but you should also try it out if you are an adult and want to awaken your inner child!
Materials: Watercolors, acrylics, essential oils.
38. Sound-to-Shape Drawing
Close your eyes, listen to various sounds (birds, traffic, whispers), and draw abstract shapes based on what you hear.
Materials: Pen, paper, colored markers.
39. Blindfolded Drawing
Blindfold yourself and draw freely, focusing on the feeling of the pen moving across the page rather than the result. Great exercise to be in the present moment!
Materials: Paper, pencil, or charcoal.
40. Touch-Based Sculpture
Close your eyes and mold clay or playdough, focusing on how the textures and movements affect your emotions.
Materials: Clay, modeling dough.
9. Healing Through Color and Light
41. Chakra Color Painting
Create a painting using the colors of the chakras to explore energy balance and emotional healing.
Materials: Watercolors, acrylics, colored pencils.
42. Color Journal
Each day, pick a color that represents your mood and paint a page with it. Over time, reflect on your color patterns.
Materials: Sketchbook, pastels, paint.
43. Light and Shadow Play
Use a lamp or candle to cast shadows on a blank page, then trace and decorate them.
Materials: Flashlight, paper, pencils.
44. Monochrome Mood Art
Choose a single color and create an artwork using only different shades of that color to explore a specific emotion.
Materials: Watercolors, acrylics, or colored paper.
45. Sunlight Reflection Art
Place transparent colored objects near sunlight and capture their reflections in a painting.
Materials: Colored glass, paint, camera.
10. Expressing the Subconscious Through Art
46. Dream Illustration
Draw or paint a recent dream, focusing on symbols and emotions rather than realism.
Materials: Ink, pastels, or digital tools.
47. Intuitive Collage
Cut out images and words from magazines without overthinking, then arrange them into a spontaneous collage.
Materials: Magazines, glue, scissors.
48. Automatic Drawing
Without planning, let your hand move freely across the page, allowing the subconscious to guide you.
Materials: Pen, paper.
49. Tarot or Oracle Card Art
Draw inspiration from a tarot or oracle card and create artwork based on its meaning.
Materials: Tarot deck, sketchbook, paint.
50. Abstract Memory Map
Sketch an abstract representation of a memory using colors, lines, and shapes instead of literal images.
Materials: Acrylics, watercolors.
11. Releasing Stress and Anxiety Through Art
51. Shredded Paper Release
Write down worries, shred the paper, and use the pieces to create an abstract collage.
Materials: Paper, glue, markers.
52. Bubble Wrap Stamping
Dip bubble wrap in paint and stamp it onto paper, releasing tension through repetitive motion.
Materials: Paint, bubble wrap, paper.
53. Watercolor Dripping
Let watercolors drip across the paper, observing how they blend and move organically.
Materials: Watercolors, canvas, spray bottle.
54. Cut and Rearrange Art
Create a drawing, then cut it into pieces and rearrange it into a new composition.
Materials: Scissors, glue, paint.
55. Release Painting
Use large, sweeping brushstrokes to paint without any expectations or control.
Materials: Acrylics, large canvas.
12. Exploring Identity and Personal Growth
56. Lifeline Drawing
Draw a visual timeline of significant moments in your life using symbols, colors, and abstract forms.
Materials: Markers, sketchbook.
57. Future Self-Portrait
Illustrate how you envision yourself in five years, including dreams, goals, and emotions.
Materials: Watercolors, pencils.
58. Personal Crest Design
Create a personal crest or emblem using symbols representing your values and strengths.
Materials: Ink, colored pencils.
59. Transformation Butterfly
Illustrate a butterfly where each wing represents a phase of personal growth.
Materials: Paint, markers.
60. Hopes and Fears Art
Divide your paper in half: illustrate your hopes on one side and your fears on the other.
Materials: Paint, charcoal.
13. Group and Community Art Projects
61. Collaborative Mural
Work with others to create a shared mural, each person adding their personal touch.
Materials: Large canvas, paints.
62. Community Storytelling Art
Each person draws a panel of a story, passing it on for others to continue.
Materials: Paper, ink, watercolor.
63. Shared Mandala
Each person contributes a section to a large mandala, focusing on unity and harmony.
Materials: Markers, large paper.
64. Handprint Circle
Participants trace and decorate their hands, symbolizing connection and support.
Materials: Colored paper, markers.
65. Group Puzzle Art
Each person paints a separate piece of a puzzle that fits together as a whole.
Materials: Cardboard, paint.
14. Art for Relaxation and Mindfulness
66. Breathing Doodles
Breathe in and draw a line, breathe out and change direction, creating a fluid drawing.
Materials: Ink, paper.
67. Rock Painting
Paint inspirational words or images on small rocks and place them around your home or outside.
Materials: Acrylics, rocks.
68. String Art Meditation
Wrap colored string around nails to create geometric patterns.
Materials: Wooden board, nails, string.
69. Zentangle Patterns
Fill a page with repetitive patterns, focusing on relaxation.
Materials: Fine liner pens, sketchbook.
70. Spiral Drawing
Draw spirals while focusing on your breath, using different colors for different moods.
Materials: Colored pencils, paper.
15. Seasonal and Holiday-Themed Art Therapy
71. Autumn Leaf Collage
Use real leaves to create a nature-inspired artwork.
Materials: Leaves, glue, paper.
72. Winter Snowflake Mandalas
Cut intricate snowflake designs from paper.
Materials: Scissors, colored paper.
73. Spring Growth Painting
Illustrate flowers or trees representing personal growth.
Materials: Watercolors, pastels.
74. Summer Sunshine Art
Create bright, energetic art representing warmth and happiness.
Materials: Acrylics, canvas.
75. New Year Vision Board
Create a collage of goals and dreams for the upcoming year.
Materials: Magazines, glue, board.
16. Exploring Shadows and Light in Art
76. Silhouette Portraits
Trace and fill in your silhouette with symbolic imagery.
Materials: Paper, charcoal.
77. Shadow Play Art
Use shadows as the starting point for creative sketches.
Materials: Flashlight, pencil.
78. Candlelight Drawing
Draw under candlelight for a calming experience.
Materials: Charcoal, paper.
79. Contrast Painting
Create a piece using only black and white to explore contrasts.
Materials: Ink, acrylics.
80. Hidden Message Art
Write a message in white crayon and paint over it with watercolor to reveal it.
Materials: White crayon, watercolor.
17. Art for Healing and Reflection
81. Healing Garden Collage
Create a collage that represents a healing garden, filled with images of plants, flowers, or scenes that bring peace and comfort.
Materials: Magazines, glue, scissors, canvas.
82. Emotional Healing Mandala
Create a mandala that symbolizes emotional healing. Incorporate symbols or patterns that represent balance, calm, and growth.
Materials: Markers, colored pencils, digital drawing tools.
83. Healing Watercolor Flow
Let watercolors flow across your paper in an uncontrolled way. As the colors blend, focus on releasing stress and allowing emotions to flow freely.
Materials: Watercolors, watercolor paper.
84. Healing Heart Drawing
Draw a heart surrounded by elements that represent healing (e.g., light, plants, soothing colors). Reflect on how the heart is growing or mending.
Materials: Colored pencils, markers, or acrylic paints.
85. Reflective Journaling and Art
Write about a personal experience that you’re reflecting on or healing from. Illustrate the feelings and insights that arise from this reflection.
Materials: Sketchbook, pen, colored markers.
18. Art for Mindfulness and Inner Peace
86. Mindful Mandala
Create a mandala that helps you focus on the present moment. As you draw, use the repetitive patterns to calm your mind and bring awareness to the details of the process.
Materials: Paper, pens, colored pencils, markers.
87. Peaceful Landscape
Illustrate or paint a landscape that represents inner peace for you. This could be a serene beach, a quiet forest, or a calm mountain. Let your brushstrokes reflect tranquility.
Materials: Watercolors, acrylics, or pastels.
88. Breathing Art
Create an artwork that represents your breath. As you take deep breaths, let your hand move in rhythm with your inhaling and exhaling. This can help you connect with your body and calm your mind.
Materials: Paper, paint, pastels, charcoal.
89. Calm in the Storm
Depict a stormy scene with an element of calm, such as a calm figure or a peaceful place amidst the chaos. This can represent finding peace within oneself even during challenging times.
Materials: Paper, ink, colored pencils, watercolors.
90. Gratitude Tree
Draw or collage a tree, where each leaf represents something you’re grateful for. The tree can symbolize growth and mindfulness through gratitude.
Materials: Paper, colored pencils, paint, fabric.
19. Art for Resilience and Strength
91. Inner Strength Shield
Design a shield with symbols or images that represent your personal strengths and resilience.
Materials: Cardboard, paint, markers.
92. Rising Phoenix Collage
Create a collage of a phoenix rising from the ashes, symbolizing rebirth and resilience.
Materials: Magazines, glue, scissors.
93. Warrior Within Painting
Paint a warrior figure that embodies your inner strength, with armor made of symbols that represent your personal power.
Materials: Acrylics, markers, mixed media.
94. Resilience Mandala
Create a mandala that reflects your journey to resilience, incorporating symbols of endurance and growth.
Materials: Markers, colored pencils, or digital tools.
95. Mountain Climb Journey
Draw a mountain and create symbols of challenges and successes along the path to the summit, symbolizing resilience.
Materials: Pencil, watercolors, or pastels.
Images of Warriors for Inspiration
20. Art for Personal Growth and Transformation
96. Path of Progress
Create a series of artworks that represent different stages of personal growth. Each piece can symbolize a milestone, showing how you’ve evolved and what you’ve learned along the way.
Materials: Paper, markers, paint, collage materials.
97. Breakthrough Moment
Draw or paint a representation of a moment in your life when you overcame a challenge or made an important discovery about yourself. Capture the emotion and strength behind this breakthrough.
Materials: Watercolors, charcoal, ink.
98. The Phoenix Rising
Illustrate a phoenix rising from the ashes, symbolizing transformation and renewal. Use vibrant colors to convey the power of change and the strength it takes to rebuild.
Materials: Paint, pastels, markers.
99. Limitless Ladder
Create a ladder or staircase artwork to symbolize your climb toward your goals and personal growth. Each step on the ladder can represent an achievement or lesson learned.
Materials: Paper, colored pencils, markers, rulers.
100. Shifting Boundaries
Draw an image that reflects how your personal boundaries have shifted over time. This could be abstract, showing a fluid, changing form that represents growth in self-awareness and respect for your own limits.
Materials: Acrylics, canvas, mixed media.
21. Grief and Loss
101. Memory Box Collage
Create a box filled with personal items, photographs, or mementos that remind you of a loved one you’ve lost. Decorate the box with images, symbols, and words that represent your feelings. Use the box as a safe space to reflect on your grief journey, adding new items as you process your emotions.
Materials: Box, scissors, glue, photographs, mementos, magazines, decorative paper, fabric scraps, paint
102. Grief Mandala
Draw or paint a mandala that reflects your grief. Use colors and patterns that symbolize the different emotions you’re experiencing, such as sadness, anger, or peace. The repetitive nature of creating the mandala can help you focus and find healing in the process of letting your emotions flow.
Materials: Paper, colored pencils, markers, paints, rulers, compasses (optional)
103. The Empty Chair
Create an artwork of an empty chair that represents the person you’ve lost. You can draw or paint the chair and use fabric or photographs as a base for the chair’s seat or back. The empty chair serves as a space to acknowledge their absence and reflect on what they meant to you.
Materials: Paper or canvas, charcoal, pastels, fabric (optional), personal items or photographs
104. Grief Garden
Paint or sketch a garden with flowers or plants that represent different aspects of your grief. Each plant can symbolize a unique emotion or memory. This creative process can help transform feelings of loss into something beautiful and nurturing, encouraging emotional growth through your art.
Materials: Watercolor or acrylic paints, brushes, colored pencils, markers, textured paper
105. Letter to Your Lost Loved One
Write a heartfelt letter to the person you’ve lost. Combine your written message with an expressive artwork, using paints, symbols, or collages that represent your feelings. This allows you to communicate your grief in multiple forms, combining the written word with creative expression to honor their memory.
Materials: Paper, pens, markers, acrylic paints, mixed media (optional)
22. Social Media Detox
106. Unfollow & Reclaim Your Space
Create a visual representation of your social media space. This could include a collage of accounts or feeds that cause stress, negativity, or FOMO. As you cut out these elements, think about what you need to let go of to feel more at peace.
Materials: Scissors, magazines, glue, paper, markers, stickers
107. Mirror Reflection
Draw or paint a self-portrait, focusing on how you feel about yourself when you are offline versus when you are comparing yourself to others on social media. This exercise can hopefully help recognize the internal pressure that social media can create.
Materials: Paper, pencils, watercolors, markers
108. Reframe Your Feed
Create a vision board that reflects the kind of content you want to see in your life, showing positive influences, healthy habits, and positive messages. This exercise is meant to help you shift your focus from negativity to empowerment.
Materials: Magazines, scissors, glue, poster board, markers
109. The Social Media Monster
Illustrate or sculpt a “monster” that represents the negative side of social media. This could symbolize anxiety, addiction, or fear of missing out (FOMO). Symbolize the creature in a way that reflects your own emotional response to social media.
Materials: Clay, paint, markers, paper, mixed media.
110.Breaking Free
Draw a chain or cage around a figure/person or a symbol of freedom. As you draw, consider how social media feels restrictive and explore ways to symbolically break free.
Materials: Paper, pencils, paints, scissors, fabric (optional)
111. The Detox Tree
Create a tree with roots representing your past experiences with social media and branches that show what you hope to gain from a digital detox. Use this visual to remind yourself of the growth and peace that can come from stepping away from social media.
Materials: Paper, colored pencils, paints, markers, natural elements (leaves, twigs)
112. FOMO vs. JOY
Create a split artwork, one side symbolizing the overwhelming feelings of FOMO (such as missing out on events or social comparison) and the other side showing activities or experiences that bring true joy without social media.
Materials: Paper, paints, markers, fabric
113. Mindful Scroll
Make a visual timeline of your typical social media scroll. Break it down into moments that make you feel good versus those that create anxiety or pressure. Reflect on the impact of your scrolling habits on your mood.
Materials: Paper, colored pencils, pens, collage materials
114. Social Media Mask
Create a mask that represents the face you show on social media versus the real face you show offline. Use the mask to explore the differences and pressures of presenting a curated version of yourself online.
Materials: Mask template, paint, markers, beads, fabric
115. Escape the Screen
Illustrate or paint a scene of you escaping the digital world and finding joy in nature or simple offline activities. This piece can be a reminder to take time away from the screen.
Materials: Paper, paints, colored pencils, natural elements (leaves, flowers)
116. Peer Pressure
Draw a web or network that represents the societal pressures you feel from your social circle, influencers, or trends. Reflect on how these pressures affect your behavior and mental well-being.
Materials: Paper, markers, string, scissors, glue
117. Offline Reflection Journal
Create a journal with hand-drawn or collaged pages that reflect your offline thoughts and feelings. Use the journal to explore your emotions after taking time away from social media.
Materials: Blank notebook, markers, colored pencils, magazines
118. Addiction Chains
Illustrate chains or ropes connecting you to social media platforms. Consider how these digital connections might feel constraining or addictive. Use the artwork to visualize breaking free from these habits.
Materials: Paper, markers, scissors, string, glue
119. Social Media Scrapbook
Create a scrapbook of your social media highlights, but instead of showcasing achievements, focus on moments when social media made you feel anxious or pressured. Reflect on the contrast between reality and what you post online.
Materials: Old photos, scrapbook, glue, markers
120. Digital Footprint
Create a map or footprint trail showing how your digital presence impacts your real-world self. This artwork could include your online behavior, feelings about social media, and how it connects to your physical well-being.
Materials: Paper, pencils, colored markers, collage materials
Download to your phone or Pin it!
Mental Health Disclaimer:
The content shared on this website is for informational and inspirational purposes only. It is not intended to replace professional mental health advice, diagnosis, or treatment. If you are experiencing emotional or mental health challenges, please seek support from a qualified therapist or mental health professional. The exercises and resources provided here are meant to support your personal growth, but they are not a substitute for face-to-face therapy or professional guidance.
Read my boring disclosure for more info.