According to several studies published in the media, mental health is a topic that greatly concerns citizens. The pace of life, social, economic and political problems generate many problems that affect people's mental health. Research on the benefits of artistic activities on mental health is a field that is gaining more and more attention in the scientific community. According to studies carried out by different institutions, such as the World Health Organization, artistic activities can help improve mental and emotional health, as well as promote social integration and improve the quality of life of people who practice them.
Faced with this situation, in recent years several initiatives have appeared that seek to help people with mental health problems through different activities, among which art stands out. In this sense, research on the impact of art and culture on the psychological well-being and social participation of people with mental health problems is an initiative that seeks to delve deeper into this issue.
One of these initiatives is led by Osonament, a non-profit organization whose mission is to improve the quality of life of people with mental health problems and addictions in the Osona region, with extensive experience in the Industrial Doctorate Plan with 5 applied and collaborative research projects since 2015.
The organization launched the “Artistic Couples” project in 2006, a good example of how art can be a very useful tool to help people with mental health problems. In these fifteen years of development of the project, it has helped many people to improve their psychological well-being and their social participation. Briefly, the initiative consists of the creation and subsequent exhibition of works made by artistic couples formed by an artist linked to mental health resources and an artist from the community. These linked artists are people who use the Community Rehabilitation Service in mental health, most of whom have a diagnosis that corresponds to a severe mental disorder (SMD), of more or less years of evolution.
If we understand that a mental health problem is a set of affections in the emotional and sentimental sphere that the person experiences at some point in their life, the project affirms that art is one of the tools that allows the person to be able to externalize doubts, experiences and events in a creative way, and therefore to freely express emotions and feelings, without judgments or evaluations. With this project, people with mental health problems can work on a creative project together with other people who share the same artistic interest, which allows them to express themselves in a language that is not words and promotes psychological well-being. The creative and personal process experienced by the members of each couple plays a fundamental role in this project, above the final result of the works, although these are also valued through the catalog and the traveling exhibitions that are organized, and their subsequent final sale.
With the aim of evaluating the impact of the “Artistic Couples” project at different levels, Osonament initiated an Industrial Doctorate project in 2022. What benefits does art bring to mental health? And, more specifically, what benefits does the “Artistic Couples” project bring to its participants?, are the questions on which the research carried out by doctoral student Jaume Cases is based. The entity's project is carried out in collaboration with the University of Vic – Central University of Catalonia (UVic-UCC), led by Dr. Salvador Simó from the ISaMBeS Research Group (Innovation in Mental Health and Social Welfare) of the same university and Dr. Ruben del Rio as the project tutor at Osonament.
Ultimately, the project aims to understand the benefits that artistic activities bring to people who are going through a recovery from a mental health problem, and to consolidate these interventions as social prescriptions within the socio-health model. In addition, it aims to recognize collaborative art as a tool capable of generating satisfactory social bonds, spaces for co-creation and mutual learning.
In terms of social impact, the use of art as a therapeutic tool can stimulate links between society and culture and art, and promote social inclusion and emotional well-being. This can be especially important for those who have suffered from mental health problems and who may feel isolated from society. Through art, the creation of more inclusive and cohesive communities can be promoted.
Jaume Cases, a doctoral student in the project, explains that “the biggest challenge we have is to work on and consolidate emotional health as a priority issue to prevent and maintain stable mental health”. The research identifies art as a very useful tool to enable people to detect and express the different emotions and feelings they have, without having to restrict or hide them. He also comments that art is a good therapeutic tool for expression that allows people to externalize these emotions and through any artistic discipline: poetry, music, painting, drawing, etc.
In the medium term, the project aims to consolidate "art-community" interventions in the cross-cutting program of the community rehabilitation area, and extend artistic practices to the community and mental health institutions: "we hope to generate results that support the benefits of art in people with mental health problems in aspects such as social participation, psychological well-being, recovery, stigma and self-stigma in mental health, creative self-efficacy, among others," says Cases.
In conclusion, the impact of arts and culture on the psychological well-being and social participation of people with mental health problems is evident. Arts and culture can provide a safe and supportive environment for people to express themselves creatively, promote social connections and challenge stigma and discrimination. As such, projects such as this are important to continue to promote and support access to arts and cultural activities for people with mental health problems.
