Body, visual arts and healing: a study of the effectiveness of facilitative visual arts interventions with women survivors of intimate partner violence in Kerala

Abstract

Intimate partner violence (IPV) in a micro-space invites the attention of development practitioners to intervene at the micro-, meso- and macro-level, especially in the case of marginalised women. Here, visual arts therapy is a culturally located instrument used to impact and mobilise individuals in order to construct resilience and deconstruct stress. The article analyses such an intervention and the resultant change in 204 women violated by intimate partner violence. It uses mixed research methods, employing structured interviewing using Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale and focus group discussions. The findings reveal reduced and milder levels of anxiety, stress and depression among the women after participating in the interventions, with emergent themes including ‘fear’, ‘beatings’, ‘motivation’, ‘recovery’ and ‘healing’, and ‘mutual aid’. The implications affirm women-centred social work practice.