One Nation/One Project’s Arts for EveryBody will unveil audacious, participatory public art in collaboration with 18 small towns and big cities putting a spotlight on the proven health benefits of arts participation
September 12, 2023 – Inspired by the 1936 Federal Theatre Project where 18 cities and towns presented their own interpretations of the anti-fascist play “It Can’t Happen Here,” Arts for EveryBody will bring together people and communities in 18 cities and towns across America to simultaneously premiere an array of large-scale, site-specific participatory art projects on July 27, 2024, but the journey begins today.
Responding to the prompt “No Place Like Home,” each art project seeks to reflect the unique voice of its community, and through participation, impact the overall health of the community. In The Bronx, The Urban Health Plan (UHP) Arts Desk is one of the first intergenerational and interdisciplinary arts-led social prescribing prototypes in New York City. This initiative will engage Urban Health Plan primary care patients of all ages in physician-prescribed art experiences within their neighborhood.
Through partnerships with local arts and cultural organizations, all art genres will be offered including, visual arts, dance, music, theater, spoken word, literary, horticulture, and culinary arts. The UHP Arts Desk will also be a physical gallery and performance site to showcase the participating patients’ interdisciplinary arts engagement.
“The Bronx has ranked last among the 62 counties in NYS in crucial health measures and outcomes across all the social determinants of health for the 13th year in a row. The UHP Arts Desk’s long-term goal is to close the gap between these disparities through the proven ability of the arts to holistically and positively affect mental and physical health. It has the potential to grow into a sustainable force for revolutionary, arts-integrated, equitable healthcare,” said Paloma Hernandez, president and CEO of Urban Health Plan.
Arts for EveryBody is co-directed by national arts leaders Lear deBessonet, Nataki Garrett and Clyde Valentin and seeks to bring about a new awareness around the value arts can have on the health of people and their community.
deBessonet, Garrett and Valentin see Arts for EveryBody as a breakthrough moment in the relationship between the arts and health in the U.S. America. “Arts for Everybody aims to create an electric new awareness around the value arts can bring to the actual health of people and their community. Our hope is that the Arts for EveryBody experience will spark emotions that connect participants to their communities and each other,” said the co-artistic directors of Arts for EveryBody.
Existing research has already confirmed that taking part in the arts…
- Lowers one’s risk of dementia by 63%
- Offers health benefits comparable to weekly exercise
- Improves physical and mental health
- Can significantly reduce one’s risk of cardiovascular disease
Arts for EveryBody has commissioned a series of new research studies to further examine the connection between arts participation and the health of a community.
To learn more about Urban Health Plan’s Bronx project and the entire Arts For Everybody initiative, visit www.artsforeverybody.org.
For More Information Contact:
Brionna Poole
Jasculca Terman Strategic Communications
C: 989-482-2786
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