For the last month or so, I've been working with various art makers creating #artjournaling pages. This is a whole world of art making (one only has to scroll through the zillions of Instagram posts) where the end result is a little book full of mini artworks (and often a swathe of inspirational quotes).
Any regular art-making practice promotes health. Perhaps this seems glib - but the therapeutic benefit of art making is supported by lots of qualitative data. Vast research describes how participants in art making activities experience a very palpable sense of wellbeing, both at the time of the art making, and in ongoing ways as the art making becomes a regular practice.
The act of making, or crafting, augmenting, refining; or acting, voicing, or singing, or dancing - these physically-involving behaviours, when combined with creative brain processes and shared with other humans - become part of an endorphin-producing sequence, a 'cascade' of manufacture of neural connections that can 'ward off' the blues, creating new ways of handling emotions, reinforced by social connection and camaraderie.
Arts & Health Gippsland will be joining the new co-working space in Warragul, The Herd Coworking Space that is sponsored by our local library corp., a local branding design co., and a local legal firm. (So far, Arts & Health Gippsland doesn't have sponsorship, please make contact if you can assist!).
We will be looking into the possibility of bringing 'Arts on Prescription" to West Gippsland primary healthcare, where health practitioners recognise a need for social interaction and connection in their clientele, and recommend or 'prescribe' a social activity such as these art journaling classes.