Museums as Sites of Healing: Open Doors Talk at Brescia
The sixth installment of the Open Doors series, hosted by Fondazione Brescia Musei, Fondazione Scuola dei beni e delle attività culturali, and the Network of European Museum Organizations, is set for September 28 at 4:30 PM. It will take place online and at the Auditorium Santa Giulia in Brescia. The session, titled "La partecipazione che fa stare bene," will explore the beneficial effects of culture on both mental and physical health. James O. Pawelski, a professor at the Positive Psychology Center at the University of Pennsylvania, advocates for museums to foster well-being and work alongside scientists. He references Nathalie Bondil’s assertion that culture will improve health in the 21st century, promoting a balanced view of museums' therapeutic potential.
Key facts
- Open Doors talk on September 28 at 4:30 PM online and at Auditorium Santa Giulia, Brescia.
- Organized by Fondazione Brescia Musei, Fondazione Scuola dei beni e delle attività culturali, and Network of European Museum Organizations.
- Topic: 'La partecipazione che fa stare bene' (Participation that makes you feel good).
- Speaker: James O. Pawelski, professor at University of Pennsylvania's Positive Psychology Center.
- Pawelski directs the Humanities and Human Flourishing Project, an NEA Research Lab.
- Studies show art and beauty can modify the brain and improve well-being.
- Museums can help with collective post-pandemic trauma recovery.
- Pawelski cites Nathalie Bondil: culture will be to 21st-century health what sport was to the 20th.
- The project created a virtual art experience to study visitor behavior.
- Pawelski warns against reducing art to mere economic or instrumental value.
Entities
Artists
- James O. Pawelski
- Nathalie Bondil
- Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Institutions
- Fondazione Brescia Musei
- Fondazione Scuola dei beni e delle attività culturali
- Network of European Museum Organizations
- Positive Psychology Center
- University of Pennsylvania
- Humanities and Human Flourishing Project
- National Endowment for the Arts
- Institut du Monde Arabe
- World Health Organization
- Artribune
Locations
- Brescia
- Italy
- Auditorium Santa Giulia
- Bruxelles
- Belgium