The paper reviews literature pertaining to art and art therapy for persons with severe handicaps. Following a definition of terms (including disability terms), a distinction is made between art education and art therapy. Chapter 2 presents an historical overview on art education for the handicapped, beginning with the influences of Maria Montessori. The history of art therapy for the handicapped is then followed by reviews of art education and art therapy for the severely handicapped. It is concluded that art may be best taught to individuals with severe handicaps through a structured approach using task analysis and behavioral objectives. Chapter 3 describes functional art therapy, an approach to remediate learning problems and developmental lags. The final chapter discusses applications of functional art therapy for the severely handicapped. (CL)