The El Duende One-canvas Process Painting (EDPP) model in creative arts therapies supervision: An integrative synthesis

This article presents a conceptual integrative synthesis of three previously published studies by the authors that examined the El Duende One-Canvas Process Painting (EDPP) model as a clinical supervision framework for creative arts therapists. Study 1 consisted of a heuristic art-based inquiry by the supervisor-researcher. Qualitative Study 2 conducted semi-structured interviews with 14 experienced art therapists, and quantitative Study 3 examined the perceptions of 40 creative arts therapists across six supervision groups. To conduct this integrative synthesis, a multi-layered analytic framework was applied combining cross-study synthesis and thematic triangulation. This served to identify key cross-study themes showing that EDPP supervision enhanced reflective capacity, supported mentalization, strengthened the supervisory alliance, and fostered the consolidation of professional identity. The EDPP provided a structured yet flexible framework that encouraged playfulness and clinical processing through visual and verbal integration. While the online format expanded accessibility, the embodied and sensory aspects of artmaking were best supported by in-person settings. Each methodological strand contributed unique insights which, when synthesized, shed light on the conceptual contributions of the EDPP model to art-based clinical supervision. Taken together, these outcomes suggest that the EDPP model offers a valuable, evidence-based framework for supervision and training in the creative arts therapies.