Healing Arts Scotland
Mon 19 - Fri 23 August 2024
Image: Martin Creed. Work No. 3435 EVERYTHING IS GOING TO BE ALRIGHT. 2020 © Martin Creed. All Rights Reserved, DACS 2023. Photo: Sim Canetty-Clarke
Whether it’s dance classes, choir rehearsals, creative writing workshops or pot throwing, every day in Scotland fantastic events take place all across the country that help improve people’s wellbeing.
Healing Arts Scotland was a week-long celebration of these events, highlighting the joy they bring to those who take part, and their importance to the nation’s physical, mental and social health.
It was the first-ever countrywide Healing Arts campaign and included a range of events such as: celebratory performances, exhibitions, public art programmes, workshops, dialogues, media partnerships and a high-profile policy moment.
The key themes for the week were:
- Loneliness and isolation
- Dementia
- Young peoples’ mental health
- Social prescribing
- Arts in confined spaces
The week was led by Scottish Ballet as part of the Jameel Arts & Health Lab’s global ‘Healing Arts’ campaign in collaboration with the World Health Organisation, and was produced together with a national coalition of organisations across culture, science, health, education and government.
Vist the Healing Arts Scotland website.
#HealingArtsScotland
Events
Opening Celebration
Monday 19 August 4pm, Edinburgh
Scottish Parliament
Over 250 people took part in a huge performance of music and dance.
Featuring an ensemble cast of community performers, including National Youth Pipe Band, TRYST, Oi Musica, Samba Ya Bamba, Scottish Ballet’s Youth Exchange company, NHS staff, Dance Base’s PRIME Elders Dance Company, SB Elevate and Dance for Parkinson’s.
Conferences
Monday 19 & Tuesday 20 August, Edinburgh
Various Venues
These conferences featured UK and international speakers who are leading innovative practise in arts-in-health interventions.
There were also four specially curated panels as part of the Festival of Politics at the Scottish Parliament.
Wellbeing Concert
Wednesday 21 August 6.30pm, Glasgow
Tramway
A joyous and uplifting concert celebrated Healing Arts Scotland week. Performed by artists from Glasgow and beyond, both professional and community based.
This concert was for everyone, including those who enjoy a more relaxed performance environment: the lights were on in the auditorium throughout, audience members were free to move around and to choose where they would like to sit.
Nationwide Events
Monday 19 – Friday 23 August
Various Venues
There were over 130 Healing Arts Scotland events across the length and breadth of the country.
Day Events
Wednesday 21 – Friday 23 August
Glasgow, Aberdeen, Orkney & Shetland
Dynamic and participatory days that brought together communities, researchers, and academics to celebrate and debate the role of the arts in health.
Accessibility
Healing Arts Scotland venues were accessible wherever possible, and many events were BSL interpreted and/or live captioned.
Our Partners
Alongside Scottish Ballet and the Edinburgh International Festival, the partners who helped to shape the week included Luminate, Health and Social Care Alliance (ALLIANCE), Intercultural Youth Scotland, Scottish Opera, Sistema Scotland, National Galleries of Scotland, Creative Scotland, International Teaching Artists Collaborative, Healthcare Improvement Scotland, Imaginate, Indepen-dance, Mental Health Foundation Scotland, Tonic Arts, The University of Edinburgh, Arts Culture Health & Wellbeing Scotland.
