{"id":7473,"date":"2024-01-09T15:55:26","date_gmt":"2024-01-09T19:55:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/monastere.ca\/non-classifiee\/quand-les-musees-contribuent-au-mieux-etre\/"},"modified":"2024-01-09T16:34:31","modified_gmt":"2024-01-09T20:34:31","slug":"when-museums-contribute-to-well-being","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/monastere.ca\/en\/culture-2\/when-museums-contribute-to-well-being\/","title":{"rendered":"When museums contribute to well-being"},"content":{"rendered":"
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In 2019, a report from the World Health Organization revealed that art can be beneficial to health, both physical and mental. The WHO report was based on an analysis of over 900 scientific publications covering literature, music, visual arts, performing arts and dance.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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This recognition of well-being through the arts confirms what some researchers had been saying for years: art makes people feel good. From this research emerged art therapy and museotherapy, two concepts that continue to fuel reflection on our relationship with art and health, and which are also popular with museums around the world.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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What is museum therapy?<\/strong><\/h4>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n
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Museum therapy is a recent term recognized by the Office qu\u00e9b\u00e9cois de la langue fran\u00e7aise since 2020. It is “an individual or collective therapeutic method that consists in exploiting the museum environment for the purposes of physical, psychological and social well-being”.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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Simply put, it’s creating a therapeutic method based on the museum and its mediation activities, aimed at well-being, wellness or support for an ongoing therapy.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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Are museum therapy and art therapy synonymous?<\/strong><\/h5>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n
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Art therapy and museum therapy are two distinct but closely related practices. Art therapy relies on creativity (painting, dance, theater\u2026), while museum therapy relies on visiting museums to feel good. In the case of museum therapy, this translates into contact with objects and works of art, and participation in museum mediation activities.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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What are the benefits of museum therapy?<\/strong><\/h5>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n
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For visitors suffering from certain illnesses, museotherapy can be part of a non-pharmacological care plan. It can be applied to psychiatric, neurological or physical pathologies. Some doctors prescribe museum visits for their patients.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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Moreover, numerous studies and projects on the subject have been carried out. Take, for example, the “Alzheimer’s Project<\/a>” at the Moma (New York’s Museum of Modern Art), initiated in the early 2000s to make art accessible to people suffering from dementia and their caregivers. It was possible to observe an increase in responsiveness, interaction and good humor among patients and their carers.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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The effects of museum therapy are also noticeable in people without pathologies. Like other monuments such as churches, museum architecture generally encourages contemplation, reflection and well-being. The museum is also a place for socializing and meeting people. It has also been observed that the contemplation of works of art promotes well-being and introspection. Activities are offered to the general public at museums such as the Mus\u00e9e national des beaux-arts du Qu\u00e9bec and the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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Heritage and well-being, a new avenue<\/strong><\/h4>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n
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The Monast\u00e8re des Augustines’ team is currently preparing its next permanent exhibition, due to open in 2025. Inspired by the extensive art therapy and museum therapy research of recent years, they explore a museum approach focused on heritage and well-being. This new approach argues that heritage and history contribute to improving visitors’ quality of life. Research and development in this new field is a natural extension of Le Monast\u00e8re’s social and cultural mission. This approach allows for the Augustinian Sisters’ legacy to be kept alive in a contemporary way, to make a unique founding heritage available to all, and to generate a positive social impact.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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A taste of the museum team’s work is available in the temporary exhibition Re-Cueillir<\/a><\/em>, currently on display at Le Monast\u00e8re des Augustines. Re-Cueillir was awarded the Prix T\u00e9l\u00e9-Qu\u00e9bec – Coup de c\u0153ur du jury by the Soci\u00e9t\u00e9 des mus\u00e9es du Qu\u00e9bec 2023. The jury was particularly impressed by the exhibition’s concept: “It’s about awakening a reflection on oneself, by promoting a meditative approach that – as science continues to demonstrate – facilitates well-being. In this way, we can say that this exhibition takes care of its audience by encouraging a reflective and benevolent attitude to our way of apprehending the world”.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Cultivating Wellness Through Art<\/h3>\n

\u201cArt is good for you\u201d has been a popular saying over the past few years. It\u2019s concise, but meaningful: art truly has the power to humanize, question, soothe, and touch. \u201cArt washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life,\u201d said Pablo Picasso. So why deprive yourself?<\/p>\n <\/div>\n \n Read the article \n <\/use>\n <\/svg>\n <\/a>\n <\/div>\n

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Behind the Scenes at the Museum: Optimizing Preservation Conditions<\/h3>\n

In 2018-2019, the Archives Centre and the Museum Storage Facility at Le Monast\u00e8re des Augustines received financial assistance from the Department of Canadian Heritage\u2019s Museum Assistance Program (MAP) to optimize storage conditions for collections and archives. Many storage structures were installed, which freed up space while improving the quality of the storage conditions.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n \n Read the article \n <\/use>\n <\/svg>\n <\/a>\n <\/div>\n

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Archaeological Excavations of the Monast\u00e8re des Augustines<\/h3>\n

Between 2013 and 2015, archaeological excavations took place before the Monast\u00e8re des Augustines\u2019 rehabilitation work of the H\u00f4tel-Dieu de Qu\u00e9bec. The work cooperative, Artefactuel, was entrusted with this project and supervised by archaeologist Nathalie Gaudreau. Let\u2019s explore how unique these excavations were.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n \n Read the article \n <\/use>\n <\/svg>\n <\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Museum therapy is “an individual or collective therapeutic method that consists in exploiting the museum environment for the purposes of physical, psychological and social well-being”.","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":7219,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[146,1],"tags":[],"authors":[251],"class_list":["post-7473","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-culture-2","category-non-classifiee","authors-le-monastere-des-augustines-en"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nWhen museums contribute to well-being - Monast\u00e8re des Augustines<\/title>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n