Our Mission Statement
Our mission at Paradise Art Therapy Center LLC is to prioritize accessibility in mental health care through telehealth platforms. We are committed to reaching individuals where they are, whether it's in the comfort of their own homes or within community spaces. By offering telehealth services, we strive to break down barriers to mental health support and ensure that everyone has access to the care they need.
Furthermore, we believe in the power of art therapy to facilitate healing not only in individual settings but also within community spaces. Through our outreach efforts, we bring art therapy activities directly into the heart of communities, fostering connection, resilience, and well-being.
At Paradise Art Therapy Center LLC, we are dedicated to making mental health care inclusive, accessible, and transformative for all.
My Story
Hello, I'm Sydney P. Tremont, MA, LPC, ATR-BC, ACS, and the founder of Paradise Art Therapy Center LLC. My journey to establish this organization began with my experiences in clinical work environments that lacked support for work-life balance and treated individuals as mere dollar signs. Recognizing the importance of creating a system that prioritizes health, I believe that allowing time for the creative process and self-care enables providers to engage more collaboratively and empathically.
Driven by a passion for consulting and advocacy within the field of art therapy, I am committed to educating the public and providing mental health resources within my community. Partnering with organizations and showcasing the healing power of art is central to my practice. Together, we can promote holistic well-being and foster a culture of support and understanding. I am the president of the Michigan Association of Art Therapy and have spent years in advocacy efforts for the licensing of Art Therapy in Michigan. I provide supervision for new clincians and art therapists as a way to continue to give back to my community.
Having personally experienced the healing power of art, I am deeply motivated to share its benefits. When my twin brother passed away while I was studying sculpture in college, creating art became a vital outlet for me to process my grief through movement, critical reflection, and artistic expression. I was engaging in art therapy without knowing it. Later, becoming pregnant with my first child led me down the educational pathway of becoming a Counselor and Art Therapist. My goal is to support others in finding their own healing journeys through the use of the creative process.
Our Vision Statement
We aim to humbly expand public knowledge about the field of art therapy, improve access to care, and transition from a telehealth platform to integrating partnerships with community spaces, eventually establishing a brick-and-mortar presence. Our long-term goals are to address these objectives by supporting three levels of societal structure: Micro, Meso, and Macro.
- Micro -
self, partner(s), family/small community
Provide Art Therapy Services via Telehealth
Consider intersectionality in identities and cultural underpinnings of each human when working with individuals exploring autonomy vs. connection.
Reflect as individual providers on implicit and explicit bias as we provide services, continue to get education on decolonizing and de-centerling whiteness in practice. Work within scope of practice and use ethical guidelines and community supervision, and continuing education to better provide services.
- Meso -
community, cultural, ancestral, organizationally
Assessing our role as an organization within the community we serve, by listening to the communities needs and providing support instead of infiltrating/indoctrinating the goals of the organization onto outside organizations. Asses the communities cultural makeup and needs by using culturally informed assessment tools, listening and empathy skills. Understanding the history of the land as we explore brick and motor and community partnerships. Growing in sustainable practices to make sure the earth and it’s health are centralized in the practice at a community level.
- Macro -
economically, globally, politically
By working towards making the cost of therapy more affordable, through funding and exploring non-profit status, grant opportunities and partnerships. Through ethically sourced and recycled use of art materials. Through political advocacy to support the growth of art therapy as a field and taking initiatives to grow. By expanding this model of community connection and assessment into larger regions, creating workshops to help others assess and connect with their communities creating a healthier earth.
Many cultures use art as a sacred healing source. This is different then art therapy which is a mental health field that integrates creativity into the therapeutic process. As an art therapy center it is our job to educate ourselves as clincians and respect the protected and sacred forms of creativity found in different spiritual and cultural spheres. If you want to bring your own knowledge of creative practices into sessions we may be able to hold space (if appropriate), but we do not integrate any closed practices into our work. We continue to strive for decolonizing our therapeutic practice.
Our Approach
Paradise Art Therapy Center has an intersectional feminist approach to therapy, this means that we take into consideration the environmental factors, cultural facets and social constructs that may be impacting a persons well being. We also are influenced by a humanistic perspective that centers the person as the expert of their life. We integrate evidence-based applications like Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Mindfulness strategies and techniques informed by Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT). Our art therapy work is profoundly impacted by the work of Dr. Lisa D. Hinz, Ph.D., ATR-BC and her Expressive Arts Continuum as well as, archetypal exploration, bilateral art making techniques. The influence of Dr. Holly Rae Feen-Calligan, Ph.D., ATR-BC an inspiring teacher and Coordinator of the Wayne State Art Therapy Program.
Dream it
Being an artist is not a criteria for participating in the healing aspects of art making. Just being curious about how integrating art therapy into your mental health journey is enough to reach out, for more information. Art therapists are trained in making adjustments to make sure the mediums can be adapted to accommodate the needs of our clients.
Build it
We will work with you to create a treatment plan, working with you to develop the goals you feel would best help you connect with your authentic self. One does not need to have a previously diagnosed condition as our clincians are trained in assessment, diagnosis and treatment of mental health, not all therapy integrates art and that’s ok.
