My approach integrates clinical training with the therapeutic power of creative expression. Grounded in evidence-based practices and informed by neuroscience, psychology, and trauma theory, this work supports individuals to navigate challenges, regulate emotion, and foster lasting wellbeing.
Safety
We believe that in order to express oneself authentically, feeling safe is paramount. We utilise the principles of attachment theory and the Circle of Security to develop nurturing relationships with clients. This secure environment acts as a foundation for exploring emotions and experiences through art, and co-regualtion.
Agency
By engaging in creative expression, our clients are encouraged to take an active role in their personal growth, fostering a belief in their ability to navigate challenges. Our approach emphasises the relational context of agency, recognising that healing occurs within relationships and social environments.
Empowerment
Through a strengths-based framework and principles of positive psychology, we guide you in harnessing your internal resources to boost self-esteem and inspire action. Together, we’ll cultivate a sense of control and purpose in your life, helping you achieve your goals with confidence.
Coherence & Integration
Art therapy as a means for fostering coherence and integration means revealing and reshaping the emotional patterns that underlie various symptoms, creating a pathway to a more unified self. We collaborate to identify transformative possibilities rooted in past experiences, ultimately leading to lasting change.
Why choose Art Therapy
We offer a gentler and more attuned approach to therapy. We understand that traditional models can feel overwhelming, clinical, or disconnected, especially for children, young people, and those who experience the world differently. Our practice bridges these gaps by integrating creativity, neuroscience, and whole-person care, recognising that true healing happens when mind, body, and spirit are supported together.
Because art-making is non-verbal, it allows individuals to explore and communicate feelings that may be difficult to put into words. This supports emotional processing, strengthens identity, and enhances resilience. For children and young people, art therapy also promotes developmental milestones such as problem-solving, social engagement, and building self-confidence in a way that feels safe and enjoyable.
Art therapy supports the nervous system and healing by engaging multiple brain networks: sensory, emotional, and cognitive through the Expressive Therapies Continuum and Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics. Our work is led by four core values: safety, agency, empowerment, and integration.
What Art Therapy Achieves
Creating art in a safe therapeutic setting activates the parasympathetic nervous system, helping to lower heart rate, reduce stress hormones, and calm the body. Neuroscientist Dr Bruce Perry’s work shows that rhythm and repetitive creative activities like drawing, painting, and movement support emotional regulation and help to rewire stress responses, particularly in children and those who have experienced trauma.
Self-exploration & emotional processing
Art gives voice to feelings without words, helping make sense of experiences.
Personal communication & social engagement
Through creative expression, children, youth, and adults work on goals like identity, confidence, and self-esteem.
Regulation & nervous system impact
Engaging in creative processes lowers heart rate, supports vagal tone (a measure of calm), and activates the body’s relaxation response.
Resilience & lifelong growth
Art therapy helps build coping strategies, enhances resilience, and promotes long-term wellbeing.
PERSONAL
COMMUNICATION
DEVELOPMENTAL
OBJECTIVES
EMOTIONAL
PROCESSING
SELF-
EXPLORATION
SELF
EXPLORATION
SOCIAL
ENGAGEMENT
SELF
EXPLORATION
RESILIENCE
& INTEGRATION
SELF
EXPLORATION
FELT-SAFETY
& REGULATION
Creativity serves as a bridge between our internal thoughts and the external world.
In art therapy, this bridge helps us safely express what may be difficult to put into words such as feelings, memories, and patterns that live deep within. Through the act of creating, we give form to the unseen, allowing space for insight, healing, and growth to emerge in a way that feels grounded, personal, and empowering.
Meet Our Founder
Hello, I’m Liz – the heart behind Wild Flower & Willows. I’m a registered Creative Arts Therapist (ANZACATA) with a Master’s degree in Clinical Arts Therapy from Whitecliffe College. This included clinical training and supervised practice and Master's research dissertation exploring the intersection of psyche, trauma, and artistic expression.
My journey began in the world of design, illustration, and photography, where I developed a deep appreciation for visual storytelling as a powerful tool for communication, identity, and healing. From creating custom hand-painted heels to honour personal grief, to facilitating creative therapy workshops, my work has always been rooted in the emotional depth of creativity.
Professionally, I have supported individuals and families across residential care, education, and health settings, with a focus on mental health, neurodiversity, trauma, and grief. I also contribute to adult education and professional development, and hold certifications in Play Therapy and Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
At the centre of my practice is a belief in the integrative power of the arts to support psychological wellbeing. My approach combines clinical insight with expressive processes, drawing on neuroscience, attachment theory, and Jungian psychology. I offer a safe, relational space where creativity fosters emotional regulation, insight, and resilience. It’s a privilege to accompany clients on this meaningful journey toward growth and self-discovery.
A Window Into the Nervous System
In interpersonal neurobiology, the mind is seen as an embodied and relational process. Art can act as a mirror of our inner state, reflecting unconscious emotional patterns and nervous system responses. When we engage with art-making, especially in a safe therapeutic space, the imagery we create can help make implicit (unspoken or unconscious) experiences explicit, giving us insight into how stress or trauma may be held in the body and brain.
A Safe Pathway to Reconnection
From a trauma and attachment lens, art therapy supports right-brain processes -emotion, sensation, memory, and connection. Through colour, line, texture, and movement, art mirrors emotional states that are often beyond words. This non-verbal expression can repair ruptures in attachment by offering co-regulation, attunement, and relational safety with the therapist, which helps re-pattern the brain toward trust, safety, and connection.
A Mirror for Strength and Meaning
In positive psychology, art becomes a mirror not only for pain, but also for possibility. It reflects creativity, strength, and meaning-making. When clients externalise their thoughts and feelings through art, they can witness growth, resilience, and identity more clearly. This reflective process enhances self-awareness and cultivates hope, self-efficacy, and the capacity to imagine a different future.
Qualifications & Experience
My foundational training is in visual communication, with qualifications in design and painting. These disciplines taught me how deeply art influences human perception, behaviour, and culture. Through this work, I developed a strong understanding of how visual language shapes identity, tells stories, and creates emotional resonance - insights that now inform and enrich my therapeutic practice.
University of Canterbury
2023
PG Dip FA (Paint)
Post-Graduate Diploma of Fine Arts (Paint) Honour's Research - Exegesis
Whitecliffe College
2021
MAAT (Clinical)
Master's Degree of Arts in Creative Arts Therapy (Clinical)
Master's Research - Dissertation
CPIT
2014
Grad Dip IE
Graduate Diploma of Innovation & Entrepreneurship
- Top Business Student Award
- UC School of Law, Business & Innovation Award
CPIT
2011
BDes (VisCom)
Bachelor's Degree of Design (Visual Communication)
