Maitland Regional Art Gallery Partners with Black Dog Institute for Free Children's Mental Health Program

Maitland Regional Art Gallery (MRAG) is excited to partner with the Black Dog Institute and the Art Gallery of NSW on a new creative program that uses art to bolster self confidence and resilience in primary school children.

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The free Culture Dose for Kids (CDK) program caters to children aged nine to 12 who experience mild anxiety*.

The sessions, which will run every Saturday from 10 February to 6 April 2024, provide the opportunity for children and their parents and caregivers to creatively engage with curated artworks in a small group setting.

CDK, a joint initiative of the Art Gallery of NSW and the Black Dog Institute, aims to build social connections while contributing to improved mental health and wellbeing.

Maitland Regional Art Gallery Director, Gerry Bobsien says, ‘For many years, our arts health program has focused on adults. The Culture Dose for Kids program is a timely new initiative that we hope will help many young people in the community.

‘We are pleased to partner with the Art Gallery of NSW and the Black Dog Institute on this great program and look forward to welcoming families into the Gallery for a gentle exploration of art and creativity.’

The program spans for eight weeks, featuring a two hour workshop every Saturday from 2.00pm to 4.00pm at MRAG.

Families participating in the program will also contribute valuable insights to ongoing research on the positive effects of arts engagement on mental health and wellbeing of young individuals.

For more details or to apply for the program, visit mait.city/MRAGCDK. Successful applicants will be notified by the last week of January.

Culture Dose for Kids is part of a research study collaboration between the Art Gallery of NSW and the Black Dog Institute, funded by the Jibb Foundation.

*Anxiety itself is a normal emotion. However, some young people worry more than others, either through a greater number of worries or more frequent or intense worries. For research purposes in this project, mild anxiety refers to children who worry a little more than their peers but have not been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder.