Arts Health Antigonish (AHA!) Society

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Arts Health Antigonish (AHA!) is a collaboration between artists, health care workers and educators, which began in the sustainability movement with an exploration as to how culture contributes to community resilience. Since 2013, AHA! has lived its mission of ‘fostering creative expression for community health’, creating about 30 arts-based
programs over ten years, particularly for those with less access to the arts, those in transition, isolated, ill, lonely or vulnerable in other ways. These programs are facilitated by trained artists and offered where participants live and gather: long term care homes, schools, hospitals, libraries, community spaces, and virtually, in people’s homes. By working with people at vulnerable times of their lives, AHA! contributes not only to their personal wellbeing, but also to the overall wellbeing of our community.
145 Church Street, Antigonish, NS
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Language(s): English, French
Grade levels that programming is provided for: Primary (K - 3), Junior (4 - 6), Intermediate (7 - 8), Intermediate (9 - 10), Senior (11 - 12)
Communities served: Adults, Children, People with disabilities, Youth, Seniors
Price range of programming: Free
Venue accessibility: Not applicable
Organization type: Non-profit

This organization offers online programming
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  • Dance
  • Literary

    Poetry, Creative Writing (Fiction, Creative Nonfiction)

  • Multidisciplinary
  • Music

    Other

  • Theatre

    Improv, Storytelling, Theatre Production, Theatre for Social Causes / Identity

  • Visual Arts

    Drawing, Installation, Photography, Sculpture, Painting, Watercolour, Other

  • Film
  • Artist-Educator Partnership

    AHA! has worked with ArtsSmarts and WITS (Writers in the Schools) to offer programs based on our Spellbound by Nature online toolkit.

  • Residency

    AHA! has supported musicians and music therapists working in local schools.

  • Out-of-School Time

    AHA! has offered programs in music and 'telling stories through the arts', both after school and at lunch breaks.

  • Resources

    Our on-line Spellbound by Nature Toolkit is an educational resource.

  • Performances

    In 2019, AHA! partnered with the Shoe Project (Toronto) to offer The Shoe Project Antigonish, sharing stories of local immigrant women through a community performance. AHA! also presented The Eldertree Project to the community, a performance of the stories collected from local seniors, and 1784: (Un)settling Antigonish, a participatory theatrical and musical pilgrimage.

  • Group Classes

    Many of our programs offer small group sessions, from groups of youth to seniors.

  • Workshops

    AHA! has intermittently offered workshops for the community, particularly in November, Arts-Health Month. We occasionally offer workshops for artists in facilitating arts-health programs.

  • Therapeutic Arts Services

Featured Project

Arts Canopy

Since October of 2016, Arts Canopy has been providing arts based programming in music, visual arts, dance/movement, and poetry for people with dementia. It addresses the mental wellbeing of this growing population by providing meaningful ways for them to remain active, to retain their dignity, to encourage social engagement, to discover other ways of remembering, along with offering opportunities for creative expression. A team of professional artists and therapeutic artists from the local area facilitate Arts Canopy programming and offer creative spaces to enjoy the moment with others. Programs run once a week for ten weeks.

 

https://www.artshealthantigonish.org/projects/arts-canopy-project/

Profile last updated: Nov 24 2022

The Canadian Network for Arts & Learning does not endorse any artist, organization, program, or school. We recommend verifying all qualifications prior to any collaborations.