MuseumNext Report Highlights Youth Mental Health and Career Programmes at Getty, Stedelijk and Beyond
Around the globe, museums are hiring teenagers as paid staff and involving them in mental health initiatives. In Los Angeles, the J. Paul Getty Museum organized eight weekly Art Impact sessions with high school students from artworxLA, leading to a decrease in anxiety levels. Education Specialist Brittany Prieto observed that participants applied the techniques learned at home. Meanwhile, Oxford University Museums in England conducted an eight-week pilot program for youth facing mental health challenges, with some students returning to school afterward. Since 2008, the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam has employed 15 young individuals each year. The Reykjavík Art Museum collaborated with the Reykjavík School of Work to engage 600 teens in climate change art projects. Additionally, English Heritage's Shout Out Loud offered paid commissions, and V&A Dundee's Streets Ahead reached 64 schools across 22 authorities.
Key facts
- The J. Paul Getty Museum's Art Impact programme ran eight consecutive weekly sessions for high school students from the charity artworxLA.
- Oxford University Museums' Museum of Natural History and Pitt Rivers Museum ran an eight-week creative pilot with social prescribers from the charity Response.
- The Stedelijk Museum's Blikopeners programme has hired 15 young people aged 15 to 19 each year since 2008, paying minimum wage plus 25 per cent.
- The Reykjavík Art Museum brought 600 teenagers into the museum to explore climate change through contemporary art.
- English Heritage's Focal Point exhibited three emerging photographers' work at Stonehenge.
- National Gallery Singapore's Strength Through Art began in 2021 and partnered with Fei Yue Community Services in 2024.
- Participants' work from the Singapore programme was exhibited in January 2026 during the Light To Night festival.
- V&A Dundee's Streets Ahead challenge received sign-ups from 64 schools across 22 local authorities.
Entities
Artists
- Vincent van Gogh
- Robert Irwin
- Brittany Prieto
- Susan Griffiths
- Monica Reid
- Ariana Katrín Katrínardóttir
- Lieven De Visch
- Zoe Tee
Institutions
- MuseumNext
- J. Paul Getty Museum
- artworxLA
- Oxford University Museums
- Museum of Natural History
- Pitt Rivers Museum
- Response
- GLAM Community Engagement Team
- Stedelijk Museum
- Reykjavík Art Museum
- Reykjavík School of Work
- English Heritage
- Aardman Academy
- Shout Out Loud
- Musea Brugge
- National Gallery Singapore
- Fei Yue Community Services
- V&A Dundee
- Streets Ahead
Locations
- Los Angeles
- United States
- England
- United Kingdom
- Oxford
- Amsterdam
- Netherlands
- Reykjavík
- Iceland
- Belgium
- Bruges
- Singapore
- Scotland
- Dundee
- Stonehenge
- London