Cornelia Elbrecht is a leader in ground breaking art therapy techniques with a particular focus on healing trauma. An art therapist with over 40 years experience she is a renowned author, educator and the Founder and Director of the Institute for Sensorimotor Art Therapy.

This workshop explores the therapeutic benefits of working with the resistance of clay, which creates an instant feedback loop between physical interaction and sensory resonance within the individual. Built on five decades of clinical evidence, Clay Field Therapy® fosters the development of new neurological pathways that can bypass traumatic memories to restore wholeness and wellbeing. Clay Field Therapy® is touch therapy, a breakthrough modality endorsed by leading somatic trauma experts. A box filled with clay, water and a sponge provide the simple setting for discovering safe relationships, loving attachment and the fulfillment of vital needs. The clay’s texture, weight, and resistance demand physical effort, pushing aside cognitive conditioning and engaging the deeper, instinctual urges of the body.  

Participants will experience a process-driven engagement with the material, emphasising sensation, movement, and self-discovery rather than artistic outcomes. There will be no finished product, no artwork to display, and no sculptures to be fired. Instead, participants will take home intense body memories that emerge from the kinaesthetic motor actions combined with sensory perception. This unique approach has lasting therapeutic benefits, particularly in cases of developmental delays and in trauma work. Through guided, hands-on interactions with clay, this workshop offers a new approach that fosters self-awareness, emotional processing, and resilience for clients, within a safe and supportive environment.