Aiming to make art therapy more accessible to various patient populations, I decided to start a chapter of a California-based art therapy program at NYU. I first connected with Dr. Rizzo (Director of Innovation and Technology/Assistant Professor of Rehabilitation Medicine and Neurology) who introduced me to Professor Berberian (Director of Graduate Art Therapy). After navigating myriad administrative and logistic hurdles, I ultimately chose to start the program independently. What began as an idea for a student club evolved into a variable-credit course offered through the Tandon School of Engineering each semester since Fall 2022 for both undergraduate and graduate students – Creating Connections was born.

As Program Coordinator, I helped develop a curriculum that introduced students to the principles of art therapy and trained them as volunteers. After a semester of virtual observations, and equipped with more students, Professor Berberian and I launched the ArtWell Lab in Spring 2023. This new initiative received over 100 applicants and allowed patients to participate in weekly in-person art therapy sessions for the first time since the pandemic. Patients traveled from across the five boroughs to create art on the top floor of the Barney Building at NYU, and our students learned alongside our patient “artists-in-residence”. Through an open-studio concept that spanned a five-hour block, artists came and went, creating art that was reflective of their experiences in medicine. As the cohort progressed, quiet, reserved artists opened up about challenging experiences and found a sense of community. Patients who struggled to walk without assistance found the miraculous strength to stand in front of canvases and paint for hours. In May, Creating Connections hosted an exhibition that showcased patient artwork in a gallery open to students, faculty, art therapists, clinicians, and families.