Undergraduate Student Research Highlights

Anthropology undergraduate studies Art Therapy in China

In Summer 2024, Anthropology undergraduate Deborah Chen did research on Art Therapy at the Nanjing Outsider Art Center, a non-profit organization that provides free art therapy to individuals with mental disabilities in China. The center frequently collaborates with art galleries and disability alliances to curate and exhibit artworks created by these individuals. Through these efforts, they aim to dismantle the stigmatization of mental illness and promote healing through art therapy. The man on the right of Deborah in the photo is the founder of the art center and a key advocate and promoter of Art Brut—a genre that often includes works created during art therapy.

Woman in blue head scarf standing next to a man in dark blue scrubs