Art as Therapy
A place for learning, for expression, for creativity and for
confidence building. But most importantly of all, Julia Tapp
wants her latest venture to be a place for healing.
The new arts centre will accommodate students who wish
to use art as a form of therapy.
“I’m not a trained art therapist,” says Julia. “But I am
qualified in the art that I do, I’m a qualified teacher too
and I have personal experience to prove that art can help
overcome grief.”
In 2014, Julia lost her son Ezra in traumatic circumstances.
“I went through a period of grieving, and had a block for
about a year,” she says. “Then I had to figure out what this
[accident] had taught me, how did it change us, what can
we do to help others going through the same thing.”
She went on to create ‘Angel Portraits’, paintings for
parents who had lost a child.
For nearly four years, the qualified airbrush and customs
artist has been donating her time and materials to help
grieving families get one last moment with their child.
“They just want to show their child to the world like
everyone else does,” says Julia. “The hospital does take
photos but often there isn’t a lot of preparation or cleaning
that takes beforehand.”
Julia uses her skills to remove tubes and blemishes from a
child’s final photo.
Having completed more portraits than she ever imagined
possible, Julia intends to continue with Angel Portraits
and hopes to use funds raised within the centre to help
towards costs.