People: Emma Noack
Name: Emma Noack (she/her)
Location: North Melbourne & Sunbury, on Wurundjeri & Woi Wurrung country
Occupation/ Business: Art Psychotherapist
Who makes up your family? My parents, step mum, brother and his fiancé as well as my five close friends who live very far and wide.
What core principles / values inform your practice? Being trauma-informed is at the core of my practice as a therapist. I feel that phrase is used a lot, but to me it means understanding a client’s unique experience of the world, which includes the intersections they experience in everyday life such as ethnicity, gender, sexuality and ability. I believe strongly in Irvin Yalom’s idea of the reparative relationship, so being congruent and nurturing is core to my practice.
What are you currently working on? Right now I’m working on not feeling the need to justify the field of art psychotherapy so much, I aspire to be at a point where I feel I don’t have to explain the practice so much. I’m working on a secret product (I’m not sure how long it will take) and a podcast not at all related to art therapy, but related to life and family.
What daily practices or rituals connect you with your centre? Every day I have lemon and honey tea when I rise. Many days I wake up to a voice message from a friend overseas and I listen to it as I have breakfast, it is a great part of my day just hearing stories and telling them back!
What does community mean to you? Community actually feels like a slightly alien thing to me. I often have singular friends, rather than groups and I’ve rarely been a part of a greater community. If I’m being honest, I’m probably someone who is on the sidelines of communities, witnessing, but having my own space and distance.
What is something you're proud of? I’m proud of my ability to always follow my interests and values, rather than taking the more travelled route. Some of this comes with my privilege and the other part is my struggle with doing things with my life that I am not passionate about.
An ongoing labour of love…decorating my new apartment. I’m slowly getting furniture and framing artworks to bring it all together. I feel like I have this conflicting aesthetic of cottage core meets minimalist that I’m trying to negotiate.
My cup is full when…I get to have a long meaningful conversation with a friend.
I am grateful for..my friends.
Where can we find you (website, IG etc.)? You can find me at The Healing Art Studio, on IG @thehealingartstudio and TikTok @healingartstudio
23.08.2021
