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Wiesje Gunnink, visual artist | Orthopedics department 

“At first, the hospital felt like an overwhelming maze. I began by observing, getting to know staff, and finding moments for art breaks. Some weren’t keen to make art yet I soon felt welcome, especially among the doctors, whose openness encouraged collaboration. Working with healthcare staff felt like finding a missing puzzle piece, connecting my artistic practice with my background in a family of care workers. I translated my experiences into poems and visual works, discovering parallels between art and care, such as precision, repetition, and dedication. Together we created by drawing lines without looking, pulling threads, cutting, gluing, and reflecting on how the past, present, and future meet in care”

Emma Berentsen, performance artist | Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary surgery department

“At the start of the project, I shadowed different people from the HPB department, from observing liver transplants to joining nurses in their patient meetings. I quickly learned how flexible everyone had to be with their time and decided to claim ten minutes in the weekly team meetings for my own artistic moments, which I called Emma’s Dilemmas. Finding time and space for art wasn’t always easy, and in the beginning, I sometimes felt unnecessary among people with “real” jobs. But as I grew closer to the team, I felt more at ease. Watching a liver transplantation struck me as an artwork in itself, the precision, rhythm, and silent collaboration between surgeons almost felt like a choreography. Seeing everyone create blackout poems together was one of the highlights of the project. In those moments, I noticed small signs of connection and vulnerability as people revealed something of themselves beyond their professional roles.”

Eva Koopmans, relational artist and designer | Spiritual Care department 

“Chaplains occupy a unique position in the hospital: one of great freedom and of deep attentiveness to the humanity of each patient. Initially, I had expected to accompany them during patient visits, but for privacy reasons that wasn’t possible. This felt limiting at first but then became a source of inspiration. I realized that their work often goes unnoticed within the hospital structure, they are literally and figuratively invisible. Once, I even went on a small quest through the hospital to find their workspace, only to discover that few people knew where it was. That invisibility became central to the project: how could we make their work visible and tangible? We are now creating an artistic representation of the safe space they build with patients—a space where everything can be said and nothing has to be solved. I’ve come to feel at home within the hospital, part of a team whose quiet presence spreads like ink in water” 

Morgan Ton, visual artist and filmmaker | Beatrix Children’s Hospital 

“I started by shadowing the nurses, doctors and palliative caregivers to understand their workload, daily rhythms and perspectives to caregiving. This helped me design an art project that wouldn’t interrupt their work and could bring a sense of playfulness and joy into their day. What surprised me most is how harsh many staff were on their own creativity. I really had to encourage them to let go of perfection, and so for the first assignment I invited staff members to draw themselves as a child would, using bright colors and imagination. The results were often wonderfully playful and honest. This sparked my curiosity about how patients see their caregivers, so I created a second assignment in which patients had to draw staff members. I sometimes joined these drawing moments and it was heartwarming to see how it led to moments of connection and joy. It motivated staff members to sit down with their patients for a while without a medical purpose, and ‘switching’ roles with the patients in terms of being subject to observation” 

Anne Varenkamp, designer and visual artist | Marketing and Communication Department 

“In the communications department, I’ve been exploring how creativity can ease work pressure without disrupting daily routines. We found that short, pre-planned creative sessions worked best. At first, many employees were hesitant, saying things like “I can’t do this,” but by the end of the sessions, their attitudes often shifted completely. These workshops became moments of connection, and word soon spread that they were fun, relaxing, and a great way to meet colleagues from other teams within the same department. Often staff felt too busy or didn’t see the value at first, but over time, curiosity drew more people in. The process took patience as I was keen on letting it happen organically. For me, the conversations during the workshops were the most powerful aspect. People felt safe enough to open up, not only about work, but also about personal things. And for me as an artist, it was deeply rewarding to see participants surprise themselves with their own creativity.” 

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Five artists collaborate with UMCG staff on participatory, care-focused art projects

Since February 2025, five artists have been working with the medical centre staff on participatory, care-focused art projects in different departments of the University Medical Centre Groningen (UMCG). The artists’ aim is to co-create participatory art projects to support the wellbeing of staff. The project reflects the UMCG’s core value, See the person (Zie de mens).

The pilot is an initiative of Arts in Health Netherlands in collaboration with UMCG and theatre company PeerGroup.

Why this pilot?

Arts in Health is a growing field in which trained artists use creative methods to contribute to the wellbeing of healthcare workers and patients, and to promote healthy living. Arts in Health does not replace care, but supports it.

This pilot focuses on healthcare staff, in response to the pressures of modern healthcare—workload, technological focus, and compassion fatigue—the projects aim to create space for connection, inspiration, and to develop meaning in the work environment.

Five artists, five departments

‍Arts in Health Netherlands worked with five UMCG departments to recruit and train five artists with part of five departments for a period of five months:

• Morgan Ton, multidisciplinary artist & filmmaker → Beatrix Children’s Hospital
• Anne Varekamp, spatial designer & visual artist → Communication & Marketing
• Emma Berentsen, performance-maker & dramaturg → Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Surgery
• Eva Koopmans, relational artist & designer → Spiritual Care
• Wiesje Gunnink, artist & arts educator → Orthopedics

Pilot phases 

During Phase 1 (February–July 2025), artists got to know the staff of their UMCG department, exploring ideas and building connections with creative activities. Together, the artists and staff developed creative projects that reflect the unique context and culture of each department.

Phase 2 started in (October–November 2025). During this phase, the focus will shift to deepening and presenting the experience of art-making and ‘seeing the person’. 

Throughout both phases, the artists, programme makers, coordinator, and researchers have met regularly in a learning community. These sessions provided space for reflection, peer support, and shared learning. At the same time, researchers were collecting and analyzing  data to evaluate the pilot's process and impact.

To complete the second phase, Peergroup will work with the artists and UMCG staff to create an immersive theatrical experience that further develops the ‘See the person’ theme. This will take the form of an audiowalk – a creative reflection on the project’s theme and process. The audiowalk, together with the programme’s evaluation and report, will be presented to staff and the public at the UMCG in February.

Pilot Team

The pilot is led by programme makers Kirsten Krans & Dirk Bruinsma, researcher and trainer Ferdinand Lewis, pilot coordinator and researcher Nina van den Berg, and student assistant Twan Tromp.

Steering Committee

Strategic guidance and supervision are provided by the UMCG steering committee, chaired by Michiel Kahmann. Members: Barbara van Leeuwen, Hanneke van der Wal-Huisman, Jaap Tulleken, Bertrand de Jong, Edwina Doting, Joke Fleer, and Mark Dessing.

Pilot Partners

UMCG, University of Groningen, Aletta Jacobs School of Public Health, Peergroup, and Nationaal Programma Groningen.

Curious about what books are out there in the field of arts in health? Below is a short list of popular and academic books to get you started. These introduce the research, practice, and inspiration for Arts in Health, from authors around the world — from designing interventions to understanding how creativity supports wellbeing. Whether you’re an artist, researcher, healthcare professional, or simply curious about how art and care intersect, these books invite you to explore, learn, and connect. If you have any suggestions for books that should definitely be included, please let us know!

Art Cure: The Science of How the Arts Transform Our Health | Daisy Fancourt, 2025 

In her latest book  Daisy Fancourt, presents the latest scientific evidence on how the arts and creativity contribute to health and wellbeing. It explores how engagement with the arts can support mental and physical health outcomes across different clinical contexts, and highlights global challenges faced by the arts sector. Art Cure invites readers to reconsider the role of the arts, not as a luxury, but as an essential part of individual and societal wellbeing. 

I Heard There Was a Secret Chord, Music as Medicine | Daniel J. Levitin, 2024 ‍

In I Heard There Was a Secret Chord, neuroscientist and best-selling author Daniel J. Levitin explores the powerful relationship between music and healing, inviting readers to see music not only as art, but also as a form of care. Levitin draws  on research from neuroscience and music therapy, arguing for how music can ease suffering, promote recovery, and calm the mind. The book  connects scientific findings with stories of the experiences of  musicians and patients, illustrating how rhythm and sound support mental and physical health. A fascinating read for anyone interested in the science and art of music as medicine. 

Your Brain on Art: How the Arts Transform Us | Susan Magsamen & Ivy Ross, 2023

Your Brain on Art explores the emerging field of NeuroArts—the study of how the arts and aesthetic experiences can change the body, brain, and behaviour. The authors show how creativity affects our biology and emotions, supporting health, wellbeing, and learning. Through stories from artists and scientists, this book invites readers to see the arts not as a luxury, but as an essential part of being human. Learn more at yourbrainonart.com.

Designing and researching interventions | Daisy Fancourt, 2017 

Authored by one of the leading academics in the field, Designing and Researching Interventions provides a great introduction to the history, research, and practice of Arts in Health. Whether you are building an Arts in Health program, developing a research design, or want to understand the meaning of quality in this field, Designing and Researching Interventions will be a useful guide. 

Arts, Health and Wellbeing | Edited by Stephen Clift and Theo Stickley, 2008

Arts, Health and Wellbeing, offers many useful descriptions and examples from the field of arts in health. The book  covers topics such as arts on prescription and music therapy, for example, exploring their application in both hospital and community settings. If you are a researcher, or a practitioner in the field, or simply looking to learn more about the growing dialogue around arts and health, this book could be a valuable resource. 

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Social prescribing is a strategy to help people with health conditions that do not require clinical treatment. A person suffering from grief, loneliness, addiction, or unemployment (for example), can be referred to a trained ‘wellbeing coach’ who helps that person make a personalized plan to engage in activities, events or training with community groups, non-profits, workshops, cultural institutions, and others. Participatory arts practice can be one of the ‘prescriptions’.  

The UK is widely implementing social prescribing programmes, and the Netherlands and other countries are exploring it as well. The Dutch pilot programmes was implemented nationwide with some promising results and encouragement from insurers, primary care physicians, and patients. Read more about the Dutch version of social prescribing within the project Welzijn op Recept.

Social prescribing

• Recognises that a person's health is determined in part by social, economic and environmental factors.
• Approaches health positively, focusing on what a person is able to do, instead of on what they cannot. The person is encouraged to become active in caring for their own wellbeing. 
• Can help build social connections that support a variety of health outcomes.

The social prescribing strategy shows promise for supporting certain arts in health practices in the community. However, that is only one aspect of the field, and does not address the role that arts in health can plan in care institutions, for example.

Interest in sustainable arts in health programming is growing in the Netherlands. The increasing number of successful Arts in Health projects is encouraging administrators, funders, governments, researchers, and artists to explore the role that the arts can play in care and illness prevention. 

Arts in Health Netherlands initiated a white paper to survey the current situation and set the agenda for the future. The white paper considers  the structures that are needed in the Netherlands, to systematically support Arts in Health programming, to train practitioners, and to encourage research and policy formulation. The white paper is a first step toward a sustainable arts in health field.

The white paper is:

• Providing a unified statement from science, government, and the private sector on the situation in the Netherlands regarding Arts in Health, and the need for a sustainable field.
• Initiating active networking, knowledge-sharing, and the collaborations required to catalyse the field of Arts in Health in the Netherlands. 
• Setting the agenda for establishing stable, sustainable practice, education, and research in the field of Arts in Health.

Creation Process of the Whitepaper

Arts in Health Netherlands assembled a steering committee of front runners in the field, including representatives from the University of Groningen, Leyden Academy on Vitality and Ageing, University Medical Center Groningen, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and Landelijk Kennisinstituut Cultuureducatie en Amateurkunst (LKCA).

To create awareness of the initiative and to involve a wider network of partners, the steering committee organized a kick-off meeting at the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport (VWS) in October 2022.

The first draft of the white paper was created by the steering committee and co-authors. That draft served as a focal point for reflection and discussion with a wider national network, gathered in three roundtables in different parts of the country. At each roundtable, participants contributed to discussion and brainstorming on the practice, education, research, and policy of arts in health. 

Participants included healthcare professionals, artists, researchers, policy makers, managers, educators, practitioners and directors, all discussing how to make arts in health a sustainable field in the Netherlands. The roundtables were co-presented by Leyden Academy, Kunstloc Brabant, and University Medical Center Groningen in June and July 2023.

Each of the three roundtables focussed on a different domain;  hospital care, long-term care and the social domain. For impressions of the roundtables conversations, please read the summaries (in Dutch):

• Arts in Health in Long-term Care | Co-hosted by Leyden Academy
• Arts in Health in Social Domain | Co-hosted by Kunstloc Brabant
• Arts in Health in Hospitals | Co-hosted by University Medical Center Groningen

Publication, Launch Event and Handover

More than 200 people contributed to the final version of the white paper.
The publication was designed by the design firm JUST, which also created the Arts in Health Netherlands identity and website. The white paper was published by the University of Groningen Press, and given a public launch at the Care through Creativity event at the Grand Theatre in Groningen on 16 February 2024.  That festive event included  presentations and performances and inspiring examples from practice and research. The national newspaper NRC wrote an article about the event.

At the Care Through Creativity event, the  white paper was officially handed over by the WHO Arts in Health lead, Christopher Bailey, to the Province of Groningen alderman responsible for Arts & Culture, as well as Health & Wellbeing. At a separate event in Den Haag, the white paper was handed over to the director-general of curative care at the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport (VWS) and the director of Heritage & Arts at the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science (OCW).

The white paper Arts in health in the Netherlands: A national agenda is available via the University of Groningen Press (open access), in both Dutch and English.

Learning from other countries: A glimpse

To gain insight into how arts in health can support the healthcare transition in the Netherlands, it can be useful to see how similar initiatives have been proposed, and implemented in other countries.  All the countries discussed here recognise that transformation is needed in healthcare systems. They all argue for the support that the arts can offer.

Arts in health in the United Kingdom

The modern field of arts in health had its start more or less in the United Kingdom in the 1960’s. Initially driven by countercultural social movements, it took some time to gain a place in mainstream institutions and policy. It is only in the last couple of decades that the field really blossomed.

A number of important projects were developed in the UK between 2004 and 2007. For example, a project called Invest to Save; Arts in Health had the goal to “develop the capacity of the North West Region’s arts and health communities, and research the impact of creativity, culture and the arts on health and economic outcomes” (Parkinson, 2009, p.43). Amongst other things, this project involved visual arts and creative writing activities for older people in rehabilitation.

Around the same time, the Arts Council England and the Department of Health published a report on the prospectus of arts and health. Although this report did not initially receive a great deal of notice, over time the cultural change it recognised began to emerge.

The Arts Council has continued its work on Creative Health and Wellbeing. The National Centre for Creative Health has further supported the development of policies and research. In recent years the London Arts in Health movement has found some success hosting an annual Creativity and Wellbeing Week,  which has seen tens of thousands of active participants. This celebration of the field includes talks, film screenings and workshops. Because that event is attended by people with a variety of backgrounds, it also encourages the intersectoral collaboration that is integral to arts in health programmes.

The arts in health field has seen some developments in other regions of the UK. The Arts Council of Wales, for example, has partnered with the Welsh NHS confederation to raise awareness of the how the arts support wellbeing. The partnership set out to “embed arts and health initiatives across the NHS in Wales”. 

Arts in Health and the WHO

In 2019 the WHO commissioned a report in which they scoped over 3500 articles about the role of the arts in supporting health and wellbeing. Since then, the WHO has begun issuing policy materials and strategies for the use of  arts in health for use by the member states. Importantly, these emphasise intersectoral decision-making and planning, for example between the cultural and culture sectors. 

In 2023, the WHO launched the Jameel Arts & Health Lab, to encourage research and disseminate findings on arts in health. The Lab also organises events that celebrate, and advocate for, the introduction of national and regional arts in health initiatives around the world. 

Arts in Health and the European Commission

A report by European Commission recognises the societal value of the arts and culture for wellbeing. Policy recommendations and briefs have been issued which argue for the positive impact of the arts on wellbeing, recommending that member states implement policies to promote “long-term collaboration and mutual learning partnerships between cultural practitioners, healthcare professionals, and community organisations”. The Commission-funded organisation Culture for Health commissions research and publishes reports on culture for health, including strategic recommendations for facilitating intersectoral dialogue and action. 

Arts in Health in other European countries

Other countries in Europe are introducing arts in health plans and programmes.  The arts in health field has gained a strong foothold in Ireland, for instance: The Irish ‘Healthy Ireland Strategic Action Plan’ for 2021-2025 includes a commitment for local authorities to plan long-term cultural and arts involvement in promoting wellbeing.

As early as 2004, the Irish Arts Council wrote a practical handbook for setting up projects and networking for arts in health, and that handbook is still useful today. It outlines a step by step approach to developing an arts in health project, from initial ideas to project implementation.

Other EU countries working on arts and health projects and policy include Bulgaria, France, Luxembourg and Portugal. Scandinavian countries are particularly active in integrating arts in health into social systems. Finland, for instance, has a “coordinated national effort to publish local cultural wellbeing plans” and a Masters degree is offered in Creativity and Arts in Social and Health Fields. Denmark and Sweden are part of a pilot by the Interreg Baltic Sea Region, to experiment with ‘arts on prescription’, and the Nordic School of Arts and Health also runs many projects. 

Arts in Health in Australia and New Zealand

New Zealand’s national network for creative wellbeing, ‘Te Ora Auaha’ (Creative Wellbeing Alliance), was established in 2019 to help ensure access to arts and culture. New Zealand is also investigating arts on prescription as a way to support arts in health. Australia’s ministries of health and culture have since 2014 committed to improving the health and wellbeing of all Australians by formally recognising the role of the arts in supporting wellbeing. They have an active Arts and Health Network too, with regular meetings and several events. 

Arts in Health in Canada and the United States

Canada and the United States have active arts in health programmes and are creating national support networks, along with efforts to focus research and policy for the field.

Canada, like other countries including the UK and Finland, for example, is home to an arts in health-focused research group and offers degree programmes. Efforts to integrate research-based arts in health strategies into public policy are underway in the United States. Organisations like the National Endowment for the Arts and Americans for the Arts are now actively supporting arts in health projects. Several national projects are currently running, however funding for projects is usually not structural.

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This brief introduction to arts in health in other countries is not exhaustive, but merely offers a glimpse into some of the strategies, structures, and experiences in other countries, in the hope that they will be of use to Dutch arts in health advocates. Overall, support for arts in health is increasing in many countries and major institutions. 

For arts and health movements to become sustainable anywhere, local and national governments must systematically collaborate across sectors and with arts and health professionals.

The level at which strategies and projects are integrated into institutions varies widely. Furthermore, the structural funding for arts in health is not correlated with the wealth of particular countries: While the Greek ministries of Culture and Sports, and of Health, have both signed a memorandum which includes plans for intersectoral collaboration and the implementation of arts in health policies, the United States and Canada struggle to implement national, intersectoral, structural funding for arts in health.

Nor does a long tradition of arts in health funding guarantee ongoing structural support. Although the modern arts in health field largely developed in the UK, changes to healthcare funding in recent years has seriously impacted the field there.

The Muziekmaatjes (Music Buddies) project brings live music to children and their families in the pediatric ward of the Dijklander Hospital in Hoorn. From November 2024 to October 2025, specially trained music teachers from Boedijn Music School in Hoorn make music ‘with and for’ children and their families in the ward. 

The musical sessions take place twice a week. The music teachers are briefed by the hospital’s medical pedagogical staff, and personalise the music for each patient, for example, gentle sounds for a newborn, an upbeat and fun song for an eight-year-old, and a ukulele lesson for a teenager. Throughout, parents are encouraged to join in the creativity. 

The Music Buddies programme supplements the care provided by medical and nursing staff, supporting the wellbeing of both the children and their families. Read more about Muziekmaatjes in the article by the Noordhollands Dagblad.

According to Music Buddies project leader Ciska Ruitenberg, when she participated in the Arts in Health Summer School in June 2024, the idea for the programme was already brewing. An experienced musician and music teacher, Ruitenberg had been in conversation with Dijklander pediatrician Noud Drewes, who wanted to use live music to help his young patients feel more human and alive during treatment and recovery. Ruitenberg says, “As a teacher I know how live music can lift the spirits of young people. The idea of a hospital pilot program takes that to the next level”. 

Working with Drewes and hospital staff, Ruitenberg developed a proposal for the Music Buddies pilot and submitted it to the VSB fund, which specializes in social domain projects. VSB is partnering with Arts in Health Netherlands and Music Buddies to evaluate the pilot. 

The evaluation research is being conducted by Arts in Health Netherlands science director Ferdinand Lewis and research associate Nina van den Berg. Researcher van den Berg says,  “We are evaluating the implementation and outcomes of the programme. We will be able to say how the programme works, what needs to be adjusted, and how to make it sustainable for the future.” In the long term, the project partners hope to expand Muziekmaatjes to other departments, including the pediatric ward in the Dijklander Hospital location in Purmerend. 

Decades of scientific research show that the arts can reduce patient stress and pain, promote a sense of comfort and safety in hospital environments, and even shorten hospital stays. Music can also help patients deal with difficult treatments, and feel more engaged and ‘human’ in the high-tech hospital environment. “Especially for children in treatment, the arts can help build connections with their  ‘hospital family’ Van den Berg adds, “including their loved ones, caregivers and the musicians”.  

The goal of the programme is to promote a sense of connectedness and normality for patients. Ferdinand Lewis says, “These artists are trained to be highly sensitive to the patient’s needs, and they never pressure anyone to participate: If a child feels well enough to hear some music––and especially if they want to join in––that child is identifying with the part of themselves that is curious, joyous, and free to make choices”. Lewis adds that for parents, “Seeing their child being well, even in this small way, can also help families feel normal and connected”. 

For Ciska Ruitenberg and her Music Buddies team, the project is about much more than music. “We don’t go in with a set routine,” Ruitenberg says. “It’s about being present and responding to what a child or family needs at that moment. Sometimes that means playing quietly, sometimes it means making up a song together. It’s small, but it can really make a difference.”

‍Want to learn more about music for children in hospitals? 

Scientific studies show that live music can help children in hospitals regulate emotions, reduce anxiety, and feel more at ease in the stressful environment (Giordano et al., 2020; Blackburn, 2020a; Bush et al., 2021). Music can have the effect of lowering heart rate and breathing, or  creating a calmness that can reduce the need for medication in some cases (Colwell et al., 2013; Grebosz-Haring & Thun-Hohenstein, 2018).

Live music can help children shift their focus away from the pain and discomfort of medical procedures (Sundar et al., 2016; Uggla et al., 2019). In cases where children are hospitalized for longer periods, live music has been associated with reduced feelings of passivity and an increased sense of control—especially when music is personalized or improvised (Colwell et al., 2013).

Music can create a sense of normalcy and connection even in a clinical environment, leading families and caregivers to report feeling more like a “hospital family” (Blackburn, 2020b; Giordano et al., 2021). For parents, participating in the intervention can strengthen their sense of involvement in the child’s care, which in turn helps the parent––and the child––feel safer and more supported (Preti & Welch, 2011; Yates et al., 2018).

Blackburn, C. (2020a). Family members' perceptions of a Singing Medicine project in a children's hospital. Nursing Children and Young People, 32(1), 23–29.

‍Blackburn, C. (2020b). Music-making for hospitalized children and their families: A qualitative thematic analysis of Music-Making Sessions in a UK children’s hospital. Music and Medicine, 12(1), 45–56.

‍Bush, A. M., O'Malley, A., & Peterson, B. M. (2021). Music therapy as an adjunctive treatment in the management of stress for patients being weaned from mechanical ventilation. Journal of Music Therapy, 58(1), 14–36.

‍Colwell, C. M., Edwards, R., & Hernandez, E. (2013). The use of music therapy in pediatric oncology: A case review. Music Therapy Perspectives, 31(2), 162–166.

‍Giordano, F., Rutigliano, C., De Leonardis, F., Rana, R., Neri, D., Brienza, N., & Santoro, N. (2021). COVID-19 and absence of music therapy: Impact on mother-child dyad during invasive procedures in pediatric oncology. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 75, 101839.

‍Grebosz-Haring, K., & Thun-Hohenstein, L. (2018). Music therapy for children and adolescents. European Journal of Pediatrics, 177(6), 919–923.

‍Preti, C., & Welch, G. F. (2011). Music in a hospital setting: A multifaceted experience. British Journal of Music Education, 28(3), 329–345.

‍Sundar, S. S., Kim, J., & Zhang, B. (2016). Music for pain relief: Effects on pain intensity and perceived control over pain. Journal of Music Therapy, 53(4), 441–459.

‍Uggla, L., Mårtenson Blom, K., Bonde, L. O., Gustafsson, B., & Wrangsjö, B. (2019). An explorative study of qualities in interactive processes with children and their parents in music therapy during and after pediatric hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.

Yates, T., Stanyon, M. R., & Sampson, E. L. (2018). The role of music therapy in the care of hospitalized children: A systematic review of literature. Journal of Pediatric Nursing, 43, 45–52. 

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In her thesis, Emma Schönborn studied how the youth creativity programme Digital Art Factory (DAF), uses creativity to support the wellbeing of teenagers at three locations in Assen, Gieten, and Appingedam. Launched in 2016, today DAF is a successful and highly valued programme in its communities. 

Modeling the programme

DAF’s early success was due to inspiration, intense creativity, and the hard work of its staff. It was not, however, guided by a clearly defined programme model. “The program had always operated intuitively, but without a clear structure,” Schönborn explains. “So it was difficult for them to evaluate or replicate the program,” she explains. In 2024, DAF’s directors wanted to prepare a strategy for the organisation’s future, and they turned to Schönborn to investigate the program’s workings. 

Schönborn used methods from the ‘research-based programme evaluation’ field to interview staff, review programme documents, and observe the instructors (called “coaches”) at work. In her fieldwork she found that inspiration, creativity, and collaboration were at the heart of the program: “The instructors prioritise collaboration between the participants, and autonomy, over traditional instruction,” she explains, adding that participants “can engage with others and explore their mutual interests without fear of judgment”. Each participant sets their own learning goals and works at their own pace, pushing their imagination as far as they can. 

Using the data, Schönborn developed a detailed ‘logic model’ of the programme that articulated how DAF’s inputs —skilled coaches, creative equipment, and partnerships— and its creative process, lead to enhanced social skills and emotional well-being for young people. She existing social scientific literature on mental health and creativity to inform the study. “The DAF program model is particularly effective at fostering creativity, and it also provides a foundation for social and emotional development in its participants,” she asserts. 

A case study for organisations

The study, titled, Modeling a Youth Creativity and Engagement Programme for Mental Health: A Case Study of the Digital Art Factory was part of Schönborn’s 2024 thesis for University College Groningen. She hopes that the research and the programme modeling method will not only help DAF, but also other small arts-based community organisations that need to develop an evaluation strategy, or make plans for extending or expanding a programme. 

“With a programme like this, it’s all about the creative process,” she says, concluding, “That encourages young people to find a sense of control, feel less isolation, and make social connections.”