The MD Anderson Library will host the inaugural Artist Health and Wellness event on Saturday. The event is designed to help artists and performers gain access to important resources on campus.
“Students involved in arts and medicine should certainly attend. But, this event is of interest to all students in that how we express ourselves as creators or viewers of art is part of how we take care of our minds and bodies,” John Harvey, the Director for the Center of Creative Work and a speaker at the event, said.
The event was created in part at the suggestion of Stephanie Lewin-Lane, the UH Music Library Coordinator and one of the event’s organizers.
“We were looking at a way to combine some of our strategic directives as well as some of the initiatives for the University. Two of the initiatives were the arts initiative and the health initiative,” Lewin-Lane said.
The event will encourage students who participate in creative activities to consider the relationship between their physical and mental health and their art.
There will be several speakers, including an introduction from Jefferson Todd Frazier, the director of the Center for Performing Arts Medicine at the Methodist Hospital, and a keynote address from C. Richard Stasney, the deputy chief of otolaryngology at The Methodist Hospital.
There will also be four different breakup sessions that will focus on different topics concerning artists, including performance anxiety and physical conditioning for performance.
“We have so many artists here performing. We don’t really have a specific place that brings together all the health and wellness resources that are offered to them,” Lewin-Lane said. “It’s a great way to learn about what the University offers.”
The event will begin at 9 a.m. with a colloquium, followed by four breakup sessions for attendees. Those who registered will be provided with a complimentary lunch, and the event will culminate with a resource fair.
The event will be open to students, faculty and the public, running from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Registration is available online through the Artists’ Health and Wellness Colloquium and Resource Fair website.
