Developed by the Laboratory for Artistic Intelligence, Creative Morning Practice is a 6-week virtual guided arts program to support health and wellness, and mitigate the effects of stress, loneliness and physical isolation for the general population.
Delivered virtually, Creative Morning Practice offers an accessible, gentle, and supportive way of being socially connected to others, and helps people become personally empowered to alleviate one’s stress and anxiety.
Past participants report that Creative Morning Practice significantly boosts their energy, emotions, sense of daily wellbeing, and overall ability to focus and be productive.
What kind of impact does arts participation have on health and wellness?
Research shows that arts participation improves mental health and related wellness factors for all kinds of people. In a 2016 study, researchers found that just 45 minutes of creative activity significantly reduced stress in the body, as indicated by cortisol levels by saliva samples, regardless of whether the participant had any prior artistic experience or talent.
According to the UK’s Mental Health Foundation, engaging in art-making with artists helps address loneliness, boost confidence, make people feel more engaged and resilient, and alleviate anxiety, depression, and stress. They also suggest for policymakers that encouraging citizens to make art can save money and lives:
“Since it can be used as a non-medical approach to preventing mental health problems, [arts participation] could help save money in the health service and social care. Making art can enable people to take greater responsibility [for] their own health and wellbeing by helping maintain levels of independence and curiosity, and improve the quality of life by bringing greater joy.”2
A peer-reviewed study of current literature on art, healing, and health published in the American Journal of Public Health concludes that:
“Through the movement of mind and body in a creative way, stress and anxiety can be relieved, and other health benefits can be achieved as well. […] In all 4 areas of creative artistic expression reviewed here [music, visual arts, creative movement, expressive writing] there are clear indications that artistic engagement has significantly positive effects on health.”3
Why not just send people books or films? The Harvard Medical School reports that making art is more effective than “merely appreciating creative works”:
A 2017 report from the Mayo Clinic Study of Aging indicated that people over 70 who did crafts projects had a lower risk of developing mild cognitive impairment than did those who read books. In a 2014 German study, retirees who painted and sculpted had greater improvements in spatial reasoning and emotional resilience than did a similar group who attended art appreciation classes.4
How does Creative Morning Practice work?
Creative Morning Practice employs a multidisciplinary approach — creative movement, music, visual art, and verbal and written expression — to offer accessible entry points for all people.
The practice combines social engagement with arts participation, guided by creative wisdom. Community, reflective dialogue, and co-presence are important dimensions of the program. Humans crave community. We feel more alive when we belong, and when we are in contact with the many different energies and ideas that a diverse community provides. Meaning is enhanced by the group taking the time to reflect on each other’s offers and discoveries. Participants report feeling liberated from their immediate context, and from their own habitual thought patterns.
The Laboratory for Artistic Intelligence offers expert facilitation for ‘non-artists,’ particularly for multilingual individuals, and professionals experiencing, or at risk for, existential depression. As a form of ‘social creativity,’ Creative Morning Practice has been shown in preliminary evaluations to positively impact many indicators across Body, Mind, and Spirit.
Feedback from Creative Morning Practice participants
“…on a day that I had many things on my to-do list. The Creative Practice helped me to feel more relaxed and definitely I started to enjoy my work more after the practice.”
I often go into a routine filled with bad habits while doing work. Creative Practice allowed me to break out of those bad routines and replace them with healthy practices. This in turn helped me get to a positive mindset which I carried throughout the day. Having a positive mindset while working on research increased my productivity and desire to work.
“I had just came from a 90-minute virtual yoga session. I thought my body was open and at ease. But here, I became aware of how much I was still holding in my shoulders.”
“Before I attended these sessions, I had thought it was just going to be some physical exercise with an artistic taste. But after a few sessions, I realized that these sessions were more than that for me. In fact, the connection that was established by these artists with even a few simple gestures or phrases exchanged between the participants gave me exactly the feeling that I was in a real circle with others. It was a truly unique experience… I have only met some of these people for a few sessions, but I feel like I’ve known them for a long time. It feels genuine. In addition, attending these sessions requires the use of my senses and emotions during the sessions, and this is exactly the social practice that I feel is lacking in this quarantine period.”