Abstract

In the field of art therapy, scholars with a critical lens have criticized the reductionist shortcomings of the multicultural competence trend. They argue for the need to integrate an intersectional framework and social justice approach in art therapy that acknowledges structural power and systemic oppression and urges art therapists to undergo critical self-reflexivity. In line with this approach, and through a postcolonial feminist lens, the researcher investigates her sociocultural identity. Starting at a cognitive level and then digging into her body, mind and soul through artmaking, imaginal dialogue, and writing. This research utilized a heuristic-arts-based methodology to address the researcher's own journey in critical self-examination of her different identity markers shaped by interconnected systems of oppression. The researcher was guided by Moustakas' (1990) six-step heuristic inquiry and used various approaches and forms of art throughout the research process. The main themes deciphered are discussed in this contextual essay and portrayed in the video performance: Unraveling and Reconciling Fragments of Myself. Link: https://nataliortiz77.wixsite.com/fragments