Meet our new International Journal of Art Therapy (IJAT) Advisors…
Introducing the first-ever Trainee and New Practitioner Advisors for the International Journal of Art Therapy: Sarah Kavermann, Jess Baum and Sarah Jane Sellors.
Sarah Kavermann started the first role of New Practitioner Advisor in February 2020. Sarah has a background in primary school teaching and is currently working as an art therapist at a SEN school, working with young people from 5-16 years old and their families. She has also worked as a research assistant for Oxford’s department of psychiatry. 
Jess Baum and Sarah Jane Sellors recently joined IJAT in July 2021 as the first-ever Trainee Advisors for the journal.
Jess is a second-year trainee art therapist at the University of South Wales. She has a background in the arts and arts education, and is also a birth and land worker, and potter.
Sarah Jane has recently qualified as an integrative arts therapist from Institute for Arts in Therapy and Education London. She has a background in graphic design and publication. Sarah Jane has also recently co-authored a peer-reviewed paper deepening her understanding of the urgent need for further art therapy research.
We recognise that trainees and new practitioners come from a diverse range of backgrounds and lived experiences (class, ethnicity, culture, religion, neurodiversity, disabilities/abilities, genders, sexualities, privilege). We are committed to educating ourselves and dedicated to contributing to the development of the journal’s anti-oppressive practices.
Having been drawn to the positions through a shared interest in research, the aims of our roles are to:
- Engage trainees and new practitioners of all backgrounds with the journal.
- Facilitate a platform through which trainees and new practitioners can voice their experiences of IJAT to help inform the Board and develop the journal.
- Promote the ways in which trainees and new practitioners can further get involved with the journal.
Interesting facts
Sarah was born and grew up in New Zealand. Her travelling led her to the UK.
Jess is a good backgammon player, after having learnt to play the middle eastern version of the game (known as shesh besh) when she lived abroad in the 1990s.
Sarah Jane is half Dutch and having been born in Naples, and lived in a number of countries throughout her childhood, travel and experiencing new cultures are an important part of her life.
Follow IJAT on Twitter @IJATInscape and join in with the conversation using the hashtag #IJATInscape. We’d love to know which papers have influenced your practice or research.
The International Journal of Art Therapy (IJAT) is published by the British Association of Art Therapists (BAAT) and Taylor & Francis.