Perfoterapia ™SM — healing through performance
Since performance art is the most intermedial field of art, Perfoterapia is the most universal method of art therapy.
Performance art is the most independent and capacious artistic discipline, eluding definition, institutionalization and appropriation, and taking infinitely many forms. Performance, meanwhile, is a new cognitive paradigm redefining our status quo. Performance can be divided into two types: cultural (material progress) and artistic (a spiritual process), including two artistic directions: classical and avant-garde, with the former encompassing theatrical productions, musical concerts and dance shows, and the latter performance art.
The significance of the phenomenon of performance is evidenced by the emergence of performance studies — research “into all kinds of performances, as well as their culturally variable frameworks” (http://www.performatyka.polonistyka.uj.edu.pl/katedra/kim-jestesmy).
In this context, therapy through performance will be therapy through performances, both experienced and created. Perfoterapia is therefore an extension of drama techniques, while drama therapy is one variant of its classical artistic direction.
The term PERFOTERAPIA was first used during the 19th International Art Festival INTERAKCJE, on 11.05.2017 at the ODA Centre for Artistic Activities in Piotrków Trybunalski
The idea of Perfoterapia was also presented for the first time on that occasion.
The next presentation took place at the 16th PIKTOGRAMY Training Conference at the Faculty of Management and Economics of Services of the University of Szczecin on 30.09.2017.
The essence of Perfoterapia is to represent the world in order to make it familiar. This is assisted by the variability of the form and the constancy of the essence of performance. In my view, Perfoterapia is a type of art therapy based on performing specific activities in order to correct or compensate for cognitive abilities. Integrative in interaction, mystical in contemplation, workshop-based in work.. It is manifold and transcends itself, so it cannot be enclosed within a definition. It can certainly take the form of dialogue, workshops and demonstrations. In the first case it involves interaction, in the second guiding the patient, and in the third inspiring and provoking them. In accordance with my intuition and, in part, my practice (examples on the websites of my employer and the A TO MY Association), more specifically we can speak of:
- Perfoterapia in the documentation of the therapeutic process
- Perfoterapia as influence, that is, changing the distribution of psychological tensions through interaction
- Perfoterapia in symbolic acts, that is, mystical actions serving transmutation
- global Perfoterapia in the context of manifestos and manifestations of art that produce signs of the times
- metasensory Perfoterapia through its emphasis on “presence”, “mindfulness”, “sensuality”, “authenticity” and other qualitative features close to Zen philosophy
- motivational Perfoterapia in view of its malleable form, which can be shaped according to any principle depending on the goal
- Perfoterapia as therapy through space, in which expanding awareness of the surroundings and their equivalents improves cognitive abilities
- executive Perfoterapia through its creative factor. Given the wealth of performemes (as units of behaviour) and pernoumena (as motivations joining them into meaningful sequences), we can speak of the practical application of Perfoterapia to developing executive abilities, for example building a bird feeder as a therapeutic process
..and others
As can be seen, these are intuitions introducing particular distinctions into official forms and methods of therapy, from which a common conclusion can be drawn that
the aim of Perfoterapia is effective change through sensitization.
The practical results of such work include the repetition of behaviours, ease in assimilating content, improvements in gross and fine motor skills, increased tolerance of the variability of the world, and many others. From personal experience: changing habits, releasing blocks, discharging tensions, clearing informational noise, recovering from addiction, and many, many others…
The topic remains open, and further references to examples around the world are posted in the COMMENTS. This is also the best place for dialogue in the form of a comment.
© Oskar Chmioła
PRACTICE
Perfoterapia can also be called psiformance (Ψformance) and serve to change the world or support self-therapy,
however, in its pure form Perfoterapia is
therapy for people with disorders.
TYPES OF DISORDERS
the author discusses work with people affected only by the indicated types of disorders — the lines in bold.
“It is impossible to present all developmental disorders associated with intellectual disability. It is nevertheless worth noting their main groups and a few example conditions:
1.Genetically determined disorders:
◾Down syndrome
◾Angelman syndrome
◾Jacobsen syndrome
◾Cat-cry syndrome — Cri du Chat
◾Patau syndrome
◾Fragile X syndrome
◾Tuberous sclerosis
2.Pervasive developmental disorders:
◾Autism
◾Rett syndrome
◾Childhood disintegrative disorder
◾Hyperkinetic disorder associated with intellectual disability and stereotyped movements
3.Neurological disorders:
◾Epilepsies
◾Cerebral palsy
◾Congenital brain malformations
◾Conditions following traumatic brain injuries
◾Conditions following infectious diseases of the central nervous system
◾Absence of cerebral cortical gyri
◾Congenital spinal cord malformations
4.Conditions following prenatal infections:
◾Rubella embryopathy
◾Congenital cytomegalovirus infection
◾Symptomatic congenital toxoplasmosis
5.Metabolic diseases:
◾Phenylketonuria
◾Galactosaemia
◾Mucopolysaccharidosis
◾Niemann–Pick disease
◾Tay–Sachs syndrome
6.Other:
◾Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (fetal alcohol syndrome)
◾Environmental neglect.”
source:
https://pl.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niepe%C5%82nosprawno%C5%9B%C4%87_intelektualna
EXAMPLES OF METHODS AND FORMS OF THERAPY
according to the author, Perfoterapia is a type of therapy in which the therapist builds an atmosphere of understanding by animating situations of metaverbal dialogue. Below, Perfoterapia appears alongside other therapeutic methods the author has had the opportunity to encounter (as an assistant, teaching assistant, observer and listener, and, in the case of art-therapy methods, as an initiator/specialist):
Physical rehabilitation
Sensory integration method
Integration of postural and dynamic reflexes and
orofacial reflexes according to S. Masgutova
Maria Podeszewska-Mateńko’s melodic text therapy
W. Sherborne’s Developmental Movement method
Corrective and compensatory activities
Speech and language therapy
Maria and Christopher Knill’s method
Morning circle — multisensory stimulation according to the seasons
Chromotherapy
Maria Montessori’s method
Bibliotherapy
Non-directive play therapy
Sensoplastyka
Visual art therapy
Perfoterapia
Drama therapy
Music therapy
Dog-assisted therapy
Vision therapy
Social skills training.
Hand therapy
…
THEORY
Over several years of study and reflection on the subject and a year and a half of practice, the author distinguished the basic features that, in his opinion, justify identifying Perfoterapia as a new therapeutic method (the author does not claim to have created it, but only to help name and develop it — in parallel with the work of others). These are the principal features (and simultaneously aims) of Perfoterapia:
Universal integration
Interactional influence
Transgressive processuality
Performemes
In addition, we can speak of certain therapeutic qualities of the very act of watching a performance, and of symbolic transgression through interaction (the author encountered the latter in the Symbolatorium of the INTERIOR Association of Experimental Art — an example — and in literature, including books by C. G. Jung). Therapeutic potential can also be discerned in John Langshaw Austin’s analysis of performative utterances itself. The author calls this dimension of drama therapy and Perfoterapia psiformance. In his activities unrelated to therapy for people with disorders, the author uses various psiformance techniques.
SPATIOTEMPORAL INTEGRATION
spatiotemporal integration — encompasses both the nervous system’s reception and processing of information from all the senses (from the body and the environment) and the recognition, experience and understanding of events occurring in time and space, enabling them to be used effectively, for example in learning, play, everyday activities and social functioning.
Total integration can be developed through a set of therapeutic actions intended to improve how the brain processes and organizes incoming sensory and emotional impressions so they can be used in action to carry out a specific activity. Total integration combines sensory integration with performeme therapy. It extends sensory integration therapy to include emotive integration therapy.
INTERACTIONAL INFLUENCE
Interactional influence — actions that improve social interaction by creating situations of a creative nature. The factor conditioning interaction is curiosity about an unusual situation, most often created in the everyday workplace or at home. Under the effect of this and similar factors, influence occurs: a change in the distribution of sensory and emotive tensions in the people affected by these factors.
In this context, Perfoterapia can be used in the treatment of social disorders and is characterized by a wealth of variants.
TRANSGRESSIVE PROCESSUALITY
Transgressive processuality — a process of therapeutic practice that continually undergoes further transformations into “something more”.
Authors of methodological studies on conducting educational therapy sessions most often distinguish two stages of work
- The initial (preparatory) stage,
- The stage of re-education proper.
The transgressive therapeutic process allows a smooth alternation between these two stages within a single operational theme. In this way, work on another disorder can begin after work on the previous one has ended, while maintaining patterns already known to the patient and familiar thematic categories.
This enables the comprehensive planning of work, refinement and direction of therapy according to the beneficiary’s particular psychological situation. It also fosters relaxation, the building of the client’s trust and their receptiveness to learning. P.T. may additionally culminate in a specific material trace, or even a collection of such traces, which further supports the individual’s development.
PERFORMEMES
Performeme — the smallest unit of behaviour and “behaving” distinguishable to members of a given Culture.
Different definitions of this concept can be proposed according to the areas in which it occurs:
◾mentalistic — a performeme is a “psychological pattern” of movement that the person acting attempts to reproduce;
◾physical — a performeme is a set of movements satisfying certain conditions of distribution and similarity;
◾functional — a performeme is the smallest unit of action capable of differentiating meaning (its specific form may itself lack that meaning).
The definition was formulated using the definition of the concept of the phoneme, which the author modified only slightly.
SOURCES
The author is aware that performance art, performing arts and performance studies provide a rich source of therapeutic inspiration. Furthermore, he uses specific therapeutic concepts
GLOSSARY
Below are several concepts that, according to the author, deserve particular attention in the context of Perfoterapia. The definitions come directly from www.poradnia-brzeg.edu.pl, where other terms can also be found.
AAC — augmentative and alternative communication, originally: Augmentative and Alternative Comunication AAC, systems of graphic signs enabling or facilitating communication (in the activities discussed, mainly the AAC PIC pictogram system — a system of pictorial symbols expressing specific representations of meaning) communication
(in the activities discussed, mainly the PIC system — a system of pictorial symbols expressing specific representations of meaning)
Analysis and synthesis (visual or auditory) — processes occurring at the level of the brain that involve breaking down and combining visual material (pictures, words) or auditory material (sounds, sentences, words) in order to construct the complete image/word.
Motor (developmental) dyspraxia — a reduced ability to plan and carry out new, purposeful motor tasks in unfamiliar situations.
Praxis — the ability to plan movement, the capacity to imagine what needs to be done and how in order to perform a task that is new to oneself correctly,
Sensory integration — the process by which the nervous system receives and processes information from all the senses (from the body and the environment), enabling its effective use, for example in learning, play, everyday activities and social functioning.
Sensory integration therapy — a set of therapeutic actions (usually physical activity involving the whole body) intended to improve how the brain processes and organizes incoming sensory impressions so they can be used in action, serving to perform a specific activity or assume a body position; if there are disturbances in the reception and integration of sensory stimuli, dysfunctions in cognitive development, motor development and behaviour will occur.
Augmentative communication (aided communication) — for many children and adults with severe speech and language disorders, it serves as a “voice” enabling contact with other people and participation in everyday life (e.g.:
Manual systems (gestures) — help with remembering the symbol being taught and associating sentence constructions. Given that the centres for speech production and hand and finger movements are located in neighbouring parts of the cerebral cortex, gestures also support learning articulation.
Unambiguous symbols — concrete representations of a verbal message (everyday objects, toys and clothes with which the child has contact). We assign a specific communicative meaning to selected objects (e.g. shoes may symbolize going for a walk, a plate may be a concrete representation of eating, etc.). Tactile systems are used in work with children with intellectual disabilities.
Graphic systems: photographs, pictures, PIC pictograms, PCS symbols and Bliss symbols. The choice of system depends on the future user’s level of understanding of graphic symbolism. pictograms — augmentative and alternative ways of communicating
— enable children’s linguistic participation in everyday life and contact with those closest to them,
— offer a way of learning to understand language for children with impaired auditory processing,
— facilitate the development of symbolization and the acquisition of concepts, thereby significantly improving development
— allow language to be made concrete and communication to use multiple channels, which is particularly important for children with intellectual disabilities,
— reduce children’s frustration and behavioural problems resulting from not being understood.
Gross motor skills — the motor abilities of the whole body (including, for example, the ability to maintain balance and coordinate limb movements when walking, running, jumping or riding vehicles such as a scooter or bicycle).
Fine motor skills (hand motor skills) — the motor abilities of the hands in terms of speed and precision of movement; these activities are necessary for self-care, drawing and writing.
Proprioception — sensations from the muscles and joints (tendons, ligaments) that, on reaching the brain, enable awareness of the current position of individual body parts and provide information about movements being made
Functional rehabilitation — improvement through functions, that is, performing activities associated with everyday life and self-care.
Stereotypy — the continuous repetition of purposeless or ritual movements, body postures or utterances occurring in people with intellectual disabilities, autism spectrum disorders, tardive dyskinesia, stereotypic movement disorder and other disorders. Stereotypy may involve simple movements such as rocking the body, as well as complex ones such as alternately crossing the legs or making marching movements on the spot.
The vestibular system — known as the sense of balance, located in the inner ear, responsible for receiving sensations associated with movement, balance and overall motor coordination; a sensory system responding to movements of the head relative to the body and to position relative to gravity.
Developmental disorders — a disorder characterized by serious impairment of intellectual functioning (i.e. a greater degree of deviation from developmental norms), as well as emotional, social and motor functioning; examples of developmental disorders include intellectual disability, autism, social maladjustment and behavioural disorders. On the grounds of developmental disorders, pupils receive a statement of special educational needs to provide a special organization of learning in terms of content, methods and working conditions.
Visuospatial abilities — abilities based on the capacity to create a mental representation of an object and carry out spatial transformations on the model created, as well as to understand the “part–whole” relationship in a perceived graphic pattern.
HYPERLINKS
the author is seeking any information on Perfoterapia and related practices. He will post every hyperlink to #perfoterapia here.
following Anna Kalwaytys:
Peter A. Levine
Gestalt psychotherapy
Ismeta
Tamalpa
Marzena Barszcz
following Łukasz Trusewicz:
Cai Qing (Sonnenberg)
A visual artist, performer, curator and lecturer from China.
From 1987 he lived and worked as an independent artist in Germany, and subsequently also as the artistic director of a gallery in New York. He ran visiting studios at various Academies of Fine Arts in China. In 2007 he moved to Singapore, where he taught at the NTU School of Art, Design and Media. In his actions, the artist focuses on the social situations of people from different backgrounds, treating performance as a tool for communicating with the audience. Interaction with the audience plays a very important role in his work. The artist is also the author of a doctoral dissertation, published as a book, on the potential of interaction in performance art in psychotherapy. The publication includes statements by numerous international artists, including Marina Abramović, Boris Nieslony and Zygmunt Piotrowski. He has participated in numerous presentations and festivals, including Future of Imagination 5, Documenta XII in Kassel, the Open Art Festival in Beijing and Shanghai, and the EPAF and Performance Platform festivals in Poland. Source: galeriaraczej.wordpress.com
© Oskar Chmioła