Carleton University faculty, students, and artists from all over Ottawa will soon be featured in the Society for Neuroscience’s Brain and Mental Health Art Show on April 6.
Gareth Rurak, a member of the art show’s committee and the Society for Neuroscience, said via email that the main goal of the art show is to “raise awareness of mental health initiatives in Ottawa and break the stigma around mental illness, start conversations and get people engaged in dialogue about mental illness.”
The art show will be a collection of artwork from people in the Ottawa community. Rurak said the event is a silent auction, and will be set up like an art gallery in the Lansdowne Horticulture Building.
Rurak added artists can choose to either donate their artwork to the auction, or just to display it in the show.
He said he isn’t sure when the show started, but he said last year’s show was very successful.
According to the event’s website, last year’s show “received over 60 submissions and the Society for Neuroscience was able to raise over $3,000 for Ancoura, a not-for-profit society that ‘helps subsidize housing for individuals living with mental illness.’”
Madison Foran, 21, contributed a sculpture to one of the previous shows.
“I submitted a piece that really stood out to me as representative of mental health,” Foran said via email. “On the day of the show, it was great. I went in and got to see a bunch of spectators looking at my piece.”
Foran said mental health is an issue that everyone should be concerned about.
“Mental health affects everyone. You either deal with it, or have had someone in your life that deals with it,” she said. “My biggest inspiration was my past battles . . . I’ve had a few rough patches that really inspired me to make something that others could relate to.”
Foran said she is a strong supporter of the art show and its cause, having attended as an artist as well as a spectator.
“One of my favorite parts about this show specifically is the opportunity to submit your personal work to an open and safe space where you can inspire and encourage conversations about mental health,” Foran said. “[Being] surrounded by beautiful art with meaning allows you to self-reflect.”
Rurak said this year’s show is being expanded to include more jewelry and pottery submissions, in contrast to the previous shows, which consisted only of visual art. He added the Society for Neuroscience is hoping to “be able to support more charities in the future that are locally based in Ottawa.”
“People can expect to see unique artwork that personally reflects mental illness in Ottawa and feel good about supporting a local charity providing housing to those who need it the most,” he said.
