Polyphony

Journal of the Irish Association of Creative Arts Therapists

Polyphony provides a space for creative arts therapists, and collaborators from connected disciplines, in Ireland and beyond to share key insights and innovations. Authors guide us through their personal and professional journeys of discovery as they learn, teach, develop and pioneer new knowledge. This platform provides a vital forum for art, dance movement, drama, and music therapists to share and promote their work and to learn from each other within and across their practices. We follow the IACAT mission “for Creative Arts Therapies to be accessible, visual and valued as an integral part of health, education and social care systems”, and we believe that the creative arts therapies hold a unique capacity to support awareness, connection, and self-knowledge and effect real change at individual and social levels.

Journal Team

Rowena Keavney, Journal Co-Editor

Rowena Keaveny is a professionally qualified Art Therapist based in Offaly, Ireland. She is passionate about making art therapy more accessible and visible as a valuable resource for positive mental health. She has a special research interest in the use of technology in the form of digital narrative to facilitate an understanding of individual experience, its impact, and, as an additional tool, to aid self-discovery and recovery. Rowena is also a practicing artist.

Maggie O’Neill, Journal Co-Editor

Dr Maggie O’Neill is a researcher in the Irish Centre for Social Gerontology, National University of Ireland, Galway. Her research interests center on issues of representation, marginality, and ageing. Her background is interdisciplinary, in literary and cultural studies, social and cultural gerontology, gender, and psychoanalytic theory.

Editorial Board

Tracey Costello

Claire Flahavan

Jessica Harris

Áilbhe Hines

Ed Kuczaj

Vicky Linnane

Alma McQuade

Nicki Power

Pamela Whitaker

International Advisory Board

Prof Jane Edwards, University of New England

Prof Sue Jennings,  University of Roehampton

Prof Phil Jones, University College London

Prof Shaun McNiff, Lesley University

Prof Helen Payne, University of Hertfordshire

We welcome contributions in the following formats

Feature Articles on creative arts therapy programs or projects

Practic Papers 

Reflections on art therapy theories, approaches, practice experience, therapists’ own art-making process

Interviews

Videos

Podcasts

Book reviews

Artwork

Poetry

Observations

Submission Guidelines

Articles / reflections / interviews / practice papers
Maximum 2000 words

Book reviews
Maximum 1000 words.

Book reviews should aim to provide a summary of the work's central features, including subject matter, organization, and structure of argument, and analysis of how the work contributes to the relevant field(s) of knowledge.

Artwork (and how to cite images)

Please include a statement with the artwork (maximum 500 words).

Please send images in JPEG format.

Please ensure that the files are labeled with the titles of the artwork.

If there are accompanying captions for the artwork, please clearly indicate the corresponding artwork and send the captions in Word format.

Please provide the following information for all artwork/photography, whether your own or from an exhibition: 

Artist/Photographer
Year (if available)
Title of the work (in italics)
Medium (for artwork)
Institution or collection that houses the work, followed by the city (if available).
E.G.: Sutherland, J 1895, The mushroom gatherers, Oil on canvas, 481x993 mm, Australian Collection, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne.

If you are citing a film still or a photo of a performance, please provide the following information:

Title of film or performance (in italics).
Year produced.
Director (full name).
Place of Production.
Production Company.
[Date viewed/performed].
For a film, name of streaming service if available e.g. Netflix, RTE Player, Amazon Prime.

Feature Articles

Unique, Persuasive, Concise

Feature articles address new ideas, interesting findings, unique approaches, and pioneering knowledge. Polyphony aims to draw attention to innovations in the creative arts therapies – whether it is research, methods of practice, opinions, or impact.

Feature articles are less than 2000 words. They are shorter than traditional articles because they do not cover the complete story. These are articles with novel approaches, essential references, and striking imagery. Full attention is placed on outcomes and discussion, and the implications of findings. The abstract is limited to 100 words.

The work reported could be evidence-based, analytical, or persuasive. These articles are unique, advancing the latest themes in the therapeutic arts. Review times are reduced, to make sure that your ideas get shared as fast as possible.

These brief papers allow you to explore your own thoughts, ideas, and insights regarding a particular topic in a less formal way than a journal article or conference paper. They provide a space for you to tease out key ideas in a format that is shorter and less time-consuming than a full-fledged paper. 

Authors should consider Polyphony a destination for contemporary creative arts therapies in progress. Headline features will report new arts therapies perspectives with “breaking” importance.

Submissions are welcome to journaleditor@iacat.ie and are considered on a rolling basis. Please note that contributions to IACAT Journal are open access.

Practice Paper Guidelines

Paper Structure:

Title Page: Start your title with "Practice paper:" and indicate what your practice involves.

Introduction:

Context: Describe the setting and who the practice serves. Discuss social factors and the need for the intervention.

Theoretical Framework: Explain the theories and concepts your practice is based on, with references to recent research and literature. Outline the rationale for your practice and interventions.

Practice Description:

Who, Where, When, How, and What: Detail, e.g., the practitioners, location, timing, delivery mode, duration, and materials of the practice. Describe the process, including the introduction of services, activities, and support provided.

Service User Feedback: If available, include feedback from those who received the service, presenting a range of experiences.

Implications for Research: Discuss future research possibilities based on practice feedback and theoretical framework. Mention any challenges encountered.

Conclusion: Summarise the main points and the paper's contributions without introducing new information. Connect your findings to broader theoretical and social contexts.

References: Cite recent and seminal research relevant to your practice. Ensure all references are cited in the text and vice versa. Include page numbers for journal articles and book chapters.

Additional Notes:

We encourage the inclusion of figures/images and supplementary materials to enrich your paper. Figures/images should be high quality and submitted as separate files.

Supplementary materials can be sent to us or linked online to support your work further.

Acknowledge anyone who assisted with the pape

Video and Audio

Authors who have video or audio files that they wish to submit with their article are encouraged to upload these to sites such as YouTube or Vimeo in advance and include links to these within the body of the article.

For all submissions

Please send files in Word format (please do not send PDFs)

If there are accompanying images, please ensure that the images are clearly captioned, and the files labeled. These should not be embedded in the Word file, but instead sent separately in JPEG format.

Please send a photo of the author/artist(s) and a brief biography (maximum 100 words).

When using a word that is or is asserted to be a proprietary term or trademark, please use the symbol ® or TM.

Reproduction of copyright material: As an author, you are required to secure permission to reproduce any proprietary text, illustration, table, or other materials you propose to submit.

Informed consent: Manuscripts must include a statement that informed consent was obtained from human subjects. Authors should protect patient anonymity by avoiding the use of patients’ names or initials, hospital number, or other identifying information.

Code of experimental ethics and practice and confidentiality: Contributors are required to follow the procedures in force in their countries that govern the ethics of work conducted with human or animal subjects.

The journal operates an anonymous review process whereby the identity of the author and reviewer are not revealed to each other during the progression of a paper.

Authors who have video or audio files that they wish to submit with their article are encouraged to upload these to sites such as YouTube or Vimeo in advance and include links to these within the body of the article.

Authors may share their article on their personal websites or via their institutional repository as long as they provide the Polyphony: Journal of the Irish Association of Arts Therapists citation and direct readers to the final published version on the journal website.

Style Guide 

Submissions should follow the APA Style.

Contact

Email: journaleditor@iacat.ie