In the framework of the Art & Well-being project, Bozar together with their local partners Samana, a smaller group of people with a chronic illness & informal carers and Mutualité Chrétienne, a Health insurance company, developed and implemented during February-December 2021 the Art on Prescription pilot project. The initiative had two different approaches: (1) qualitative programme and (2) quantitative programme.
The qualitative programme consisted in an interactive programme of multiple sessions for a fixed group of people with burn-out symptoms, CFS (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome), or fibromyalgia and a focus on art experience. The goals of the qualitative programme were: (1) to improve the well-being of participants; (2) to collect evidence on the effectiveness of the project; (3) sustainable implementation of the project.
The qualitative programme was coordinated by Bozar and each partner has its specific role in the process. Samana was responsible for referral, intake interview and selection of participants, meanwhile Mutualité Chrétienne was responsible for research design, data collection, processing and analysis. All the partners were involved in the communication of the initiative.
For the programme were selected 8 Dutch speaking participants, living in or around Brussels, who had the ability to participate both physically and mentally to all sessions and agree to participate in the study.
The persons selected to be part of the programme participated in a series of 6 workshops, every Friday, for 2 hours, after exploring alongside with a guide Bozar’s exhibitions. The workshops were structured in four main parts: (1) warm welcome and introduction; (2) discussions about personal experiences and art works; (3) reflections on their experiences. The results of the programme were evaluated by using different techniques: interviews, focus groups, observation, video recording and diary method.
The quantitative ongoing programme consists of a number of tickets for exhibitions (1 ticket for 2 persons) delivered to beneficiaries of Mutualité Chrétienne. The goals of the quantitative programme were: (1) to broaden the scope of the beneficiaries; (2) to collect more data; (3) to raise awareness of the link between art & well-being among a broader audience.
The final results of the Art on Prescription pilot project at Bozar are expected to be delivered in February-March 2022.
