Mental Health Initiative

Student artwork created with Teaching Artist Patrycja Maksalon

ELAN ArtEd’s Mental Health Initiative supports Artists in their professional activities, with a special focus on equipping Teaching Artists in meeting student needs. Workshops and materials are offered on mental health as it applies to artists and mental health as it applies to Teaching Artists working with children and pre-teens ages 5-14, youth ages 15-29 and seniors ages 65+.

Since 2019, the Mental Health Initiative has reached:

→ +170 Artists, of whom 95 work as Teaching Artists

→ +18 000 people of all ages

Creative Care for Artists

Creative Care for Artists aims to support the mental health and well-being of artists in Quebec through workshops, events and podcast series offered by health professionals and community members.

The Creative Care Podcast

What does mental health and wellbeing mean as it relates to artists? Hosted by musician and teaching artist Louise Campbell, the Creative Care podcast dives into fostering one’s own creativity, mind-body connection, community building, and risk factors for burnout and addiction. Guests Adela Kwok, Alyssa Kuzmarov, Andy MacDonald, Ariana Pedrosa, Emmanuelle Meunier and Guy Rex Rodgers share their experience and knowledge based on their multifaceted careers that weave together their passion and skills as artists with their respective work in community, social work and various creative art therapies.

Acknowledgements

The views expressed herein are based on the experience and professional training of each guest, and supported by information on mental health and wellbeing that were current at the time of recording in March 2024. These views do not necessarily represent the views of ELAN or CHSSN. This podcast was recorded at ELAN’s CDAH, with mixing by Tyler Rauman and editing by Ariel Piermont. Music featured on this podcast was composed, performed and produced by Louise Campbell.

Past Creative Care activities

Past activities include:

Click here to listen to the Creative Care Podcast

Mental Health Initiative for Teaching Artists

For an introduction to supporting youth mental health through the arts, listen to:

The Arts and Youth Mental Health podcast– with host Louise Campbell and guest social worker and teaching artist Alyssa Kuzmarov

To find Teaching Artists who have received CHSSN Mental Health Initiative training, see:

ArtistsInspire: Connect with Artists (use the search engine to find CHSSN trained artists)
Arts and Older Adults: see artist profiles for sample workshops

For evidence-based guides and research on supporting mental health through the arts, see:

Guide to supporting youth mental health in and through the arts – by Dr. Tiina Kukkonen
Guide to supporting older adults in and through the arts – by Andy MacDonald & Louise Campbell
ELAN ArtEd Mental Health Intiatives (2019-2023) Longitudinal Survey – by Louise Campbell

For teaching artist rosters and funding opportunities, see:

Teaching Artist rosters (many of which include funding opportunities)
Funding sources for Arts & Culture in the Community (detailed summaries)

Other funding opportunities (links only)

Testimonials

“… These workshops create a community for Teaching Artists so that we can support each other to learn and grow in our work with youth and as artists.”

– Filmmaker and social worker Alyssa Kuzmarov leads the Youth Mental Health Initiative.

“… [pursuing creativity] is a great way for people to support their own wellness, and that’s not necessarily to say that it has to be, you know, deep and profound all the time. It can just be plain fun.”

– Musician, teaching artist and project lead Louise Campbell, Interview, The Blank Canvas, 2023.

This project has been made possible through a financial contribution from the Public Health Agency of Canada, CHSSN, the Secrétariat aux relations avec les Québécois d’expression anglaise, and the Secretariat à la jeunesse. The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the views of the Public Health Agency of Canada, CHSSN, the Secrétariat aux relations avec les Québécois d’expression anglaise, or the Secretariat à la jeunesse.

Logo for Secretariat a la jeunesse Quebec. logo image features the text and the blue and white flag of quebec

Land Acknowledgement

ELAN is an official minority language organization within a country that recognizes two languages as official. ELAN is located in Tiohtià:ke, the original name for Montreal in Kanien’kéha, the language of the Mohawk—also known as Mooniyang, which is the Anishinaabeg name given to the city by the Algonquin. While we are based in this city, our projects have also taken place in many regions across Quebec.

We acknowledge the colonial origin of English and French in Canada, and recognize that both languages benefit from official status throughout the land. The province that we know as Quebec is an amalgamation of the traditional territories of the Innu and Inuit nations, Algonquian nations, as well as the Mohawk nations of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy. Kanien’kéha and Anishinaabemowin are but two of the original languages of this province; Atikamekw, Cree, Inuktitut, and Innu-aimun are also among the many Indigenous languages spoken across Quebec as majority languages, all well before French and English.

ELAN acknowledges the important work being done by First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples to revive the traditional languages of these territories, and their advocacy for the official status of Indigenous languages.