ICTIDC`s Special Art based tool - THEATRE OF THE EMPOWERED 

“The art-based training brings artists and arts organisations into the business to motivate, inspire, challenge and unlock the potential of our staff, on both a professional and personal level. Artists and arts organisations come into the workplace to tackle specific business issues, from creative thinking to leadership styles and writing skills.”

- Keith Weed

The Irish Creative Training and Innovative Development Center`s ARTS-based TRAINING HUB applies the methods of the arts-based training as employee or staff development training such as team building, communication and conflict management skills), delivered using the arts (music, visual arts, applied drama etc.)

​The ATH Arts Based Training programs are specially devised courses to help organisations tackle some of the most pressing issues they face – their critical learning challenges.

Run by artist-trainers, the AHT training programs help build effective teams, enhance leadership, boost confidence, improve communications, manage change and develop individual and organizational strategies.

They place emphasis on learning by doing and balances an innovative approach with rigorous training practice and structure.

 In our Art-Based Training Hub, we follow the approaches of Lotte Darsø:

•         the Arts applied as an instrument for team-building, communication training, leadership development, problem-solving and innovation; and
  
•  the Arts integrated as a strategic process of organisational transformation.
  

In the Arts-based Training Hub those methods are used to provide transformation and growth services in public and private sectors, civil society organizations, nonprofits and businesses: from solicitors and law firms, to local councils and community-based organisations all over Ireland and the EU.

Our Tailor-made Art-based Training Programs focus on five following steps:

• Organisational rationale behind choosing arts-based training. Tainting objectives, motivation and long-term learning and change aims.
• Identification of the most appropriate art form(s) to meet each partner`s learning challenge.
  
• Involving artist-experts and facilitators
  
• Integrating the arts-based activities into a wider blend including preparation, follow-up, coaching and so on.
  
• Applying strategic thinking for sustainable follow ups addressing the organisation’s longer-term learning and performance challenges.
  

 Arts-based Knowledge Translation (ABKT)

 In the Arts-based training Hub we address the ABKT as a process that uses diverse art genres (visual arts, performing arts, creative writing, multimedia including video and photography) to create a participatory learning process with the goal of catalysing dialogue, awareness, engagement, and advocacy to provide a foundation for social change on important societal issues.  Arts-based knowledge translation continues to grow in popularity among training providers and knowledge mobilisers, because of its capacity to reach and engage diverse audiences through the arts.

In our search to provide a practical ABKT framework to assist organizations and individual learning journeys, our planning framework is based on the research Tiina Kukkonen and Amanda Cooper:

• setting goals of ABKT by target audiences;
• choosing art form, medium, dissemination strategies, and methods for collecting impact data;
• building partnerships for co-production; and
• assessing impact.

 
Gestalt practice and arts-based training for leadership, innovation and change management skills

Gestalt practice and arts-based training has been examined and evaluated using evidence from the literature and personal experience. Gestalt practice is in essence a highly experiential approach and, as such, provides space for active experimentation in a training or coaching session.

Naoum Liotas points out that gestalt practice allows the training and learning process to take into account the intrapersonal as well as the interpersonal aspects of the group and the individuals involved: the resulting knowledge and understanding can be used to the benefit of learners.

By combining Gestalt concepts with experimentation from the arts, a significant methodology for teaching soft skills and helping learners to acquire leadership, innovation and change management skills is developed and arts-based training is used to largely benefit organizations and individuals.