AAV wins ABAF Award!
5 October 2010
Deborah Mills (Arts and Health Foundation), Santha Press (Arts Access Victoria) and Richard Price (Eastern Regions Mental Health Association)
We are thrilled to announce that Arts Access Victoria has been awarded the inaugural ABAF 2010 Arts & Health Foundation Award in Victoria for its partnership with Eastern Region Mental Health Association (ERMHA)!
A new award in 2010, the Arts & Health Foundation Award promotes relationships between arts and healthcare organizations that improve health and well-being. It’s a way of showcasing the work being done to support community-based programs. The Victorian winner was Arts Access Victoria and Eastern Regions Mental Health Association (ERMHA) for the support each provide in facilitating the presentation of art classes by professional visual artists to people recovering from serious mental illness.
Congratulations to Arts Development Officer Santha Press and her tireless work in the area of Mental Health, and to ERMHA’s Richard Price for an inspiring partnership.
As Santha explains “Arts Access Victoria has been working with the Eastern Regions Mental Health association for the past four years. This relationship has its foundations in a genuinely collaborative approach to the delivery of a diverse arts program for people in recovery from severe mental illness.
Detail from 'The Wall' mural
“Outcomes from the partnership have included two major exhibitions produced in collaboration with Cardinia Shire Council, the creation of a massive mural on the wall of a courtyard in the mental health ward of Casey Hospital in partnership with Southern Health, and the production of a documentary film of the project that has been screened on ABC 1 and 2 and the Australia Network.
“For participants in these programs the outcomes have been significant. Many have seen their creativity, previously undiscovered, become realised and celebrated. Many have increased social confidence and their participation in community life has expanded. Hospital staff report decreased rates of hospital readmissions. Staff from both ERMHA and Arts Access Victoria have learned from one another’s professional practice and both organisations have grown stronger through this collaboration.
“Receiving the inaugural ABAF Arts and Health Award is a great way to acknowledge this important partnership and celebrate everyone who has contributed to its success.”
Look out for the next project from AAV’s Mental Health program – an art exhibition at the AAV Gallery as part of Mental Health Week, 10 – 16 October.
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