ENTRY DEADLINE: August 21, 2021
Mental Health Mosaics is seeking ten artists/makers/creators of any medium to
respond to one of ten different mental-health-related topics through an independent project. Selected artists will each receive a $500 honorarium.
We invite you to define ‘artist’ as fluidly and generously as possible and are equally looking forward to reviewing applications from makers, musicians, performers, poets, visual artists, and beyond.
Each entry must be original. If it is visual art, it must be physically available to Out North for exhibition purposes until January 31, 2022. Multiple entries are permitted. Artists will be notified of their acceptance on or before September 15, 2021. If accepted, a curator will follow up with additional information regarding art drop-off and forms to receive the honorarium.
For more information, contact Cecilia Karoly-Lister at cc.karoly.lister@gmail.com or Anne Hillman at anne@outnorth.org.
Mental Health Mosaics is seeking ten artists/makers/creators of any medium to
respond to one of ten different mental-health-related topics through an independent project. Selected artists will each receive a $500 honorarium.
We invite you to define ‘artist’ as fluidly and generously as possible and are equally looking forward to reviewing applications from makers, musicians, performers, poets, visual artists, and beyond.
Each entry must be original. If it is visual art, it must be physically available to Out North for exhibition purposes until January 31, 2022. Multiple entries are permitted. Artists will be notified of their acceptance on or before September 15, 2021. If accepted, a curator will follow up with additional information regarding art drop-off and forms to receive the honorarium.
For more information, contact Cecilia Karoly-Lister at cc.karoly.lister@gmail.com or Anne Hillman at anne@outnorth.org.
The Topics
1) Breaking the Silence
The first step in normalizing conversations around mental health is breaking the silence. For this topic we’ll explore personal stories of starting these conversations and get tips from people who have had breakdowns or have helped people in crisis. We’ll also hear from community members about what “mental health” and “mental wellness” means to them.
2) Understanding Being Diagnosed
Being diagnosed with a mental health condition can be both validating and terrifying. It can help you understand what’s happening or make you feel marked. This topic includes conversations around what it means to receive a diagnosis, how to deal with having a label, advocating for yourself, and seeing yourself as a whole person. We’ll also touch on dual diagnosis, self-diagnosis, and peer support.
3) Identity and mental wellness
It’s so easy to feel lost. To not understand your cultural ties to people and places. To worry about being open to those around you about your gender identity or sexual orientation. To flounder while trying to ascribe to another person’s values because you’ve never had the support to find your own. How we see ourselves as individuals and as part of a group affects our mental wellness. This episode explores the idea of knowing who you are and how that strengthens us.
4) Youth mental health
Social pressure, academic expectations, and family relationships. Young people are juggling a lot of stressors as their brains develop and they try to find their place in the world. How do we support them? What do we teach about mental wellness so youth can support themselves? How do young people get their parents to take them seriously? This topic explores mental health from a youth perspective and how it’s different from the concerns of adults.
5) Balancing family relationships
Parenting is hard on a good day. Add in a mental health challenge and sometimes it can feel nearly impossible. What do you tell your kids about your mental health? How do you balance your needs with theirs? Learn how caregivers navigate their relationships with their children and hear stories of children growing up around mental illnesses. We’ll also explore how parents support their adult children who have mental illnesses while also letting them live their own lives.
6) Colonization, white supremacist culture, and mental health treatment
The behavioral health system does not work for everyone, especially people of color. Many ideas about therapy are predicated on white cultural norms and individual health. Colonizers and western religious leaders intentionally crushed Indigenous ideas about wellness and healing. This topic explores how white supremacist culture and colonization shaped mental health treatment and what people are doing to change that.
7) Preventing and healing from suicide
Open and direct conversations about suicide can help prevent it from happening and help people heal if someone does complete suicide. This episode will focus on personal stories and professional advice on how suicide affects families and communities, how to talk about the topic, and how to heal.
8) Alaska Native traditional healing
Before settlers and missionaries colonized Alaska, many different cultures had traditional healers. With the advent of Christianity and western medicine, traditional healing became taboo and healers were seen as mentally ill. Through interviews with healers and elders, we will explore the history of traditional healing in some Alaska Native cultures and how traditional health-based practices are now used to support mental wellness.
9) Houselessness and mental health
People who are houseless are significantly more likely to experience severe mental illnesses and trauma than those with consistent housing. Some of those conditions are exacerbated by being on the streets. So what can be done to support people in those situations? What are the myths surrounding mental health and houselessness? How are the challenges facing youth different than those facing adults?
10) The evolution of crisis response systems
Imagine having a mental health crisis and breaking down in public. Police officers arrive in full uniform. No matter what their intention, their presence and their weapons are triggering. But the people trying to help you had no one else to call. That system is shifting in Alaska with the development of new Mobile Crisis Teams and the Crisis Now model. Instead of calling law enforcement people can call trained providers to help deescalate the situation. This episode will explore what changes are happening to emergency response systems, the evidence behind why the new systems work, and where different Alaska communities are in the process.
The first step in normalizing conversations around mental health is breaking the silence. For this topic we’ll explore personal stories of starting these conversations and get tips from people who have had breakdowns or have helped people in crisis. We’ll also hear from community members about what “mental health” and “mental wellness” means to them.
2) Understanding Being Diagnosed
Being diagnosed with a mental health condition can be both validating and terrifying. It can help you understand what’s happening or make you feel marked. This topic includes conversations around what it means to receive a diagnosis, how to deal with having a label, advocating for yourself, and seeing yourself as a whole person. We’ll also touch on dual diagnosis, self-diagnosis, and peer support.
3) Identity and mental wellness
It’s so easy to feel lost. To not understand your cultural ties to people and places. To worry about being open to those around you about your gender identity or sexual orientation. To flounder while trying to ascribe to another person’s values because you’ve never had the support to find your own. How we see ourselves as individuals and as part of a group affects our mental wellness. This episode explores the idea of knowing who you are and how that strengthens us.
4) Youth mental health
Social pressure, academic expectations, and family relationships. Young people are juggling a lot of stressors as their brains develop and they try to find their place in the world. How do we support them? What do we teach about mental wellness so youth can support themselves? How do young people get their parents to take them seriously? This topic explores mental health from a youth perspective and how it’s different from the concerns of adults.
5) Balancing family relationships
Parenting is hard on a good day. Add in a mental health challenge and sometimes it can feel nearly impossible. What do you tell your kids about your mental health? How do you balance your needs with theirs? Learn how caregivers navigate their relationships with their children and hear stories of children growing up around mental illnesses. We’ll also explore how parents support their adult children who have mental illnesses while also letting them live their own lives.
6) Colonization, white supremacist culture, and mental health treatment
The behavioral health system does not work for everyone, especially people of color. Many ideas about therapy are predicated on white cultural norms and individual health. Colonizers and western religious leaders intentionally crushed Indigenous ideas about wellness and healing. This topic explores how white supremacist culture and colonization shaped mental health treatment and what people are doing to change that.
7) Preventing and healing from suicide
Open and direct conversations about suicide can help prevent it from happening and help people heal if someone does complete suicide. This episode will focus on personal stories and professional advice on how suicide affects families and communities, how to talk about the topic, and how to heal.
8) Alaska Native traditional healing
Before settlers and missionaries colonized Alaska, many different cultures had traditional healers. With the advent of Christianity and western medicine, traditional healing became taboo and healers were seen as mentally ill. Through interviews with healers and elders, we will explore the history of traditional healing in some Alaska Native cultures and how traditional health-based practices are now used to support mental wellness.
9) Houselessness and mental health
People who are houseless are significantly more likely to experience severe mental illnesses and trauma than those with consistent housing. Some of those conditions are exacerbated by being on the streets. So what can be done to support people in those situations? What are the myths surrounding mental health and houselessness? How are the challenges facing youth different than those facing adults?
10) The evolution of crisis response systems
Imagine having a mental health crisis and breaking down in public. Police officers arrive in full uniform. No matter what their intention, their presence and their weapons are triggering. But the people trying to help you had no one else to call. That system is shifting in Alaska with the development of new Mobile Crisis Teams and the Crisis Now model. Instead of calling law enforcement people can call trained providers to help deescalate the situation. This episode will explore what changes are happening to emergency response systems, the evidence behind why the new systems work, and where different Alaska communities are in the process.
To apply, please complete this online application