The 2020 Mental Health Art Works! Exhibition is now open for entries.
The exhibition is being organised by local not-for-profit Central Coast Primary Care, with the eight-day event to be held during Mental Health Month in October.
A celebration of creativity and mental health, the exhibition puts the spotlight on sound mental health and the therapeutic power of art as a form of self expression.
It also works to quash the stigma face by those with a lived experience of mental illness.
Since launching at Gosford in 1999, the exhibition has grown to become a much anticipated part of the Coast’s Mental Health Month festivities, with over 145 artists taking place in last year’s event.
Those artists ranged from 9 years old to 78 and came from all walks of life, reflecting the exhibition’s diverse categories.
Central Coast Primary Care CEO, Michelle Bradbury, hopes even more local people will consider entering this year’s exhibition.
“Last year we saw more artists exhibit than ever before, and this year we are hoping even more local people share their story through their artwork at the exhibition,” she said.
To be eligible to enter the exhibition, artists must have a lived experience of mental illness; as an individual, a family member, friend or carer, or as a volunteer or worker in the mental health sector.
Each year artists exhibit a diverse range of artworks in various mediums including painting, sculpture, drawings, ceramics, photography, and writing.
Anybody interested in learning more about the exhibition, including how to enter, should contact Central Coast Primary Care.
The exhibition will be held from October 14 to 20 at Gosford Regional Gallery’s Community Gallery.
Source:
Press release, Jun 24
Rebecca Muscat, Central Coast Primary Care