Museums and Mental Health: Mapping Connections in Europe

Museums, galleries, and heritage institutions are increasingly positioning themselves as vital community resources that can contribute to mental wellbeing and help reduce health inequalities. This online symposium aims to deepen understanding of how cultural institutions across Europe are engaging with mental health through innovative practices and partnerships.

The day-long programme will be structured around three thematic sessions. Each will include short presentations from researchers and practitioners, followed by a respondent-led discussion and audience Q&A. Presentations will be delivered in English and French, with opportunities for participants to ask questions in their preferred language (English or French).

This event is organised by Dr Nuala Morse (University of Leicester) and Dr Margareta von Oswald (Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin), with support from the Maison des Sciences Humaines et Sociales Paris Nord.  

Museums and the Mental Health Policy Landscape: 10h00-11h45 CET

What is driving museum work on mental health? What institutions and actors are shaping this work? How are culture and mental health understood, organised and either seperated or integrated in different European policy context? What cases of studies are available for evaluation?

Speakers:

• Nils Fietje – BCI Unit, WHO Regional Office for Europe and Jameel Arts & Health Lab
• Dr Katerina Mavromichali – Hellenic Ministry of Culture, Museums Exhibitions and Educational Programmes, Athens, Greece
• Prof Dr Ulrike Kluge –Berlin Institute for Empirical Integration and Migration Research, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin / Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin
• Jasmine Lebert – 3bisf Centre d’arts contemporains, Aix en Provence, France

Respondent:

Prof Dr Milena Bister, Institute of European Ethnology, Humboldt-Universität zu Berli, Berlin

Museums, Mental health and inclusion/exclusion: 13h00-14h45 CET

What barriers to access and engagement persist for individuals living with long-term mental health conditions? How can museums confront exclusive practices and use curatorial and participatory approaches to challenge stigma?

Speakers:

• Isabel Nottaris – Office de coopération et d'information muséales (OCIM), Universite de Bourgogne, France
• Bart Marius – Museum Dr. Guislain, Ghent, Belgium
• Joan Seguí – l’ETNO, Museu Valencià d’Etnologia, Spain
• Cécile Dumoulin – Musée des civilisations de L’Europe et de la Méditerranée (Mucem), Marseille, France

Respondents :

Dr Nassim Mehran, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany

Museums and care work: 15h00-16h45 CET

What are the existing frameworks of practice and the current training available for museums and mental health work? What are the potential risks and harms associated with this work?

Speakers:

• Helen Wakely and Madeleine Kennedy – Wellcome Collection, UK
• Injonge Karangwa – Faculty of Arts, KU Leuven, Belgium
• Prof Manon Parry, Department of History, European Studies and Religious Studies, Faculty of Humanities, University of Amsterdam, Netherlands
• Dr Nathalie Bondil – Institut du Monde Arabe, Paris, France

Respondent:

Echo Wichera, artist, Berlin, Germany [update]

The full programme can be accessed here (PDF will download in a separate window)

The event will take place on Zoom. Delegates are welcome to attend the full day, or a single session.

Image: Art, Soin, Citoyenneté, journal de bord, septembre 2024, 3bisf - centre d’arts contemporains d’intérêt national au coeur du Centre Hospitalier Montperrin, Aix-en-Provence, photographies: Maya Benarouch, Anais Roubertou