Verena Kast - “In Creation You are Created (Jung). Creativity in Jungian Psychology”
According to Verena Kast, creative activity supports the process of individuation in a profound way, especially in periods of existential crisis or transition (such as losses, role changes, aging or crises of meaning). In her philosophy, creativity becomes a symbolic and transformative tool that helps the individual to reorganize their inner life and find psychic coherence when old structures fall apart.
The analyst shows that, in such moments, the individual is more open to the contents of the unconscious. Archetypal images, dreams, myths or creative impulses can be “messengers” of the unconscious, which provide a symbolic language for unspoken conflicts or emotions that are difficult to integrate. Through creation – whether it is writing, drawing, movement, music or imaginary reflection – the person can give visible form to unseen inner realities, initiating a process of psychic reorganization.
Kast argues that the creative act is an “intermediate” space between the conscious and the unconscious, in which new meanings can be explored. This is essential for individuation, which involves precisely the integration of inner polarities and the emergence of a coherent, autonomous, and authentic self.
“Creative activity is not just expression, it becomes a means by which a person gets closer to himself, giving symbolic form to his fragments. In times of crisis, it can even become an act of psychic survival.”
For Verena Kast, creativity is not a "luxury" of the spirit, but a process of transformation that can accompany the individual in the most fragile moments of life, helping them to find their direction, meaning, and inner balance.
Prof. Dr. phil. Verena Kast, psychologist, analyst and psychotherapist, was Professor of Anthropological Psychology at the University of Zurich. She is a training analyst and supervisor at the C.G. Jung Institute in Zurich and was President of the Institute's Board of Trustees.
She was President of the Swiss Society for Analytical Psychology and the IAAP, where she initiated the current statutes.
Throughout her career, Verena Kast has been actively involved in promoting the understanding and appreciation of analytical psychology. She has given countless conferences and lectures, both in Switzerland and internationally, and her writings and research have been widely published in academic journals and the specialist press. She can be considered one of the pioneering figures in the field of analytical psychology.
