WEST LIBERTY, W.Va., Jan. 9, 2020 — West Liberty University Creative Arts Therapy student’s 2020 Exhibition is now on display at the Towngate Gallery in Wheeling from January 3, 2020 to February 28, 2020.
Located on the first floor of Oglebay Institute’s Towngate Theatre, 2118 Market St., the exhibition includes studio arts as well as work created from art therapy directives.
“Thank you to the Olgebay Institute for giving us the opportunity to display our student’s artwork to the community,” said Dr. Susan Ridley, who is the assistant professor of Creative Arts Therapy at WLU.
“This exhibition not only showcases the talent of students, but also raises awareness of the power of the healing arts to help others.”
This exhibition includes studio arts as well as work created from art therapy directives. It is open for viewing from 11 a.m. -1 p.m. Monday through Friday and during all Towngate Theatre and Cinema events.
Students exhibiting their work includes Savannah Allen, Haley Baker, Rosie Brill, Allyssa Bush, Taylor Cline, Danielle Coss, Chelley Guinn, Juju Haug, Lindsay Manor, Eddy Mayfield and Claire Pittman.
Art Therapy is a mental health profession that uses art media and the creative process to explore feelings, reconcile emotional conflicts, foster self-awareness, manage behavior and addictions, develop social skills, improve reality orientation, reduce anxiety, and increase self-esteem.
Art therapists are master-level clinicians who work with people of all ages with various abilities and disabilities. Guided by ethical standards and scope of practice, their education and supervised training prepares them for culturally proficient work with diverse populations in a variety of settings.
West Liberty University is the only public university in the state of West Virginia offering an undergraduate degree and is in the process of developing a graduate degree in Art Therapy and Counseling.
The degree program at WLU is housed in the College of Arts and Communication and is under the direction of Dr. Susan Ridley.
For more information, call 304.336.8251, email susan.ridley@westliberty.edu, or visit our webpage at westliberty.edu/CAT.