The effects of colours, shapes and boundaries of landscapes on perception, emotion and mentalising processes promoting health and well-being

Place has a special characteristic - a physical visual shape - that operates as an intensive visual idea. Drawing from the 'therapeutic landscape' concept (Gesler, 1992), this study focuses on the clients in a psychiatric clinic in Switzerland and how they experience place through a psychotherapeutic painting and autobiographical narration process. Based on an inductive qualitative approach, the narratives are structured in an open coding process orientated toward 'blue' and 'green' space, based on the space and place discourse of Relph (1976). Two dimensions of Relph's (1976) 'perceptual and existential' space exist in the narratives of the clients: firstly an individual dimension associated with perception and feelings, with meaning and symbolism, as well as with health and wellbeing; and secondly, a place-landscape dimension with diversification of colours, shapes and borders. In the interaction between individuals and place and landscape, a perceptional, emotional, mentalising process emerges that contributes meaningfully to health and well-being.