An Increasing Number of Adults Are in Need of Arts During the Pandemic
Mental and emotional wellbeing
According to a Drexel University published in the Journal of the American Art Therapy Association, engaging in creative activity for 45 minutes can significantly reduce stress and anxiety. Artistic pursuits can not only provide an avenue for expressing big emotions such as worry, anxiety, fear, frustrations, and anger but also bring people and ideas together.
The pandemic has resulted in a mental health crisis of alarming proportions as shown in the graph below which in turn emphasizes the importance of the arts in promoting mental and emotional wellbeing during these trying times.
The chart below shows the percentage of U.S. adults showing symptoms of anxiety and/or depressive disorder before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.
A national study supported by the National Endowment for the Arts to measure the impact of community-based cultural programs on mental health for people 65 and older found that these programs led to better health outcomes resulting in fewer doctor visits and less medication as well as higher cognitive functioning.
Art therapy is another way art is helping people deal with psychological distress. Some of the techniques used include collage, coloring, painting, photography, and sculpture which encourages people to not only explore how they feel about what they create but also helps them understand more about themselves.
This is what the Director-General of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), Audrey Azoulay, had to say about the impact of the arts during the pandemic “Bringing people together, inspiring, soothing and sharing: these are the powers of art, the importance of which has been made emphatically obvious during the COVID-19 pandemic.” According to her, the way to go is by supporting cultural professionals and institutions and promoting access to art for all.
The top 5 roles cultural participants felt cultural non-profits should play as put forth by The COVID Cultural Impact Study (CCIS) are as follows:
Economic recovery for businesses and organizations
Encouraging community unity and vitality
Providing entertainment and escape
Offering inspiration and hope”, and
Creating employment for individuals.
Arts in CT is one such nonprofit that is committed to bringing people together to create arts irrespective of socio-economic backgrounds and that way help build stronger communities. The owners and instructors at Arts in CT are dedicated to providing a supportive and inclusive environment where creating arts can not only be fun and relaxing but also educational too.
(Originally published on Newsbreak)
Excellent, Yana. A solid story to raise our awareness and help people explore ways to cope better.
Lovely piece, Yana. Such an important message in this time in which so many are suffering without knowing what to do. But art is healing. It’s worth fighting for! Thank you