Increasing Art, Health, and Wealth in Trauma Affected Communities [PASSED]

“The arts’ impacts on health and well-being can be seen at all stages of life. From early childhood through adolescence and youth, arts education can support the social and emotional needs of students, helping them better to cope with their feelings, to bounce back from adversity, and to show tolerance and compassion for others. For older adults, greater frequency of arts participation has been linked to positive health outcomes.” (National Endowment of the Arts, 2023)

In continued exploration of this from an artist lens, the 2022 GIA Support for Individual Artist Committee members have spent a considerable amount of time in discussion around the wellness needs of individual artists in the midst of crisis and beyond. In follow up, these conversations have been elevated to select members of the National Organization for Arts and Health (NOAH) in consideration of how funders can continue to be collaborative around intersectional arts and health support for individual artists, arts organizations, and more broadly, increase access to the arts in trauma-affected communities.

We are still seeking to address the following questions: What are the various approaches that funders can take to supporting intersectional arts and health initiative in trauma-affected communities? How can this be done sensitively given the nature of this work?

Join us on July 11, 2023 at 2pm EDT/11am PDT for a workshop-style webinar around these topics. We will be joined by Christina D. Eskridge MPH, founder and executive director, Elevate Theatre Company LLC and board secretary, National Organization for Arts in Health; Rick Luftglass, executive director, Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund; and Susan Magsamen, founder and executive director, International Arts + Mind Lab (IAM Lab), Center for Applied Neuroaesthetics.

Live captioning will be available in English throughout the webinar. For additional accommodation requests, please contact GIA Senior Program Manager Sherylynn Sealy, at least three (3) business days prior to the event.

A recording of this event is now available!

Presenters

Christina D. Eskridge, MPH., founder and executive director, Elevate Theatre Company LLC and board secretary, National Organization for Arts in Health

Christina D. Eskridge, MPH is the founder and executive director of Elevate Theatre Company LLC, a company dedicated to creating space for audiences and artists to explore health and well-being through the art of storytelling. She is a performing artist, teaching artist, director, playwright and public health professional, holding a Master’s Degree in Public Health from UC Berkeley. Christina has worked to fuse her two passions of health and theater through her performances, teaching artistry, and her extensive work in health care at Kaiser Permanente. Christina is a Board Member for the National Organization for Arts in Health (NOAH) and serves as Secretary. Additionally, Christina has a role as the National Mapmakers Coordinator for One Nation/One Project. Christina believes live theater is a healing tool, ripe with opportunity to build community and improve well-being for all.

 

Rick Luftglass, executive director, Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund

Rick Luftglass is Executive Director of the Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund, which strives to increase access and opportunity for all New Yorkers and build healthy, vibrant communities. The foundation’s programs address disparities in several areas, including access to the arts, health, economic opportunity, and public service. In 2018, the Illumination Fund launched its Arts in Health initiative to support organizations utilizing the arts to address health issues that impact New York communities. Its programs in the Arts in Health initiative have focused on mental health stigma, psychological trauma, and aging-related diseases. Before joining the Illumination Fund in 2011, Rick spent 16 years at Pfizer, including as Executive Director of Pfizer’s foundation and Senior Director of U.S. Philanthropy and Community Engagement for the company, and led Pfizer’s health access initiatives for low-income uninsured patients, which donated medicines for more than 2,000,000 patients annually. At the time, Pfizer was the world’s largest corporate giver. He has served on the board of Philanthropy New York (PNY) and as co-chair of PNY’s Foundation CEO Roundtable and Community Food Funders. He also has served in committee leadership roles at the Council on Foundations, the Conference Board, and the Contributions Advisory Group. Rick started his career in nonprofit arts organizations, producing jazz concerts and immigrant cultural heritage programs. He continues this engagement role as current President of the board of the Center for Traditional Music and Dance, which collaborates with immigrant community organizations to sustain cultural heritage in New York City’s communities. He received an MBA at Stanford University's Graduate School of Business and a BA in History at Haverford College.

 

Susan Magsamen, founder and executive director, International Arts + Mind Lab (IAM Lab), Center for Applied Neuroaesthetics

Susan Magsamen is the founder and executive director of the International Arts + Mind Lab (IAM Lab), Center for Applied Neuroaesthetics, a pioneering initiative from the Pedersen Brain Science Institute at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Her body of work lies at the intersection of brain sciences and the arts — and how our unique response to aesthetic experiences can amplify human potential. Magsamen is the author of the Impact Thinking model, an evidence-based research approach to accelerate how we use the arts to solve problems in health, well-being, and learning. In addition to her role at IAM Lab, she is an assistant professor of neurology at Johns Hopkins and serves as co-director of the NeuroArts Blueprint initiative in partnership with the Aspen Institute. Susan’s newest book with Random House is Your Brain on Art: How the Arts Transform Us, written with Ivy Ross, Vice President of Design for Hardware at Google. It is a journey through the science of neuroaesthetics that offers proof of how our brains and bodies are transformed when we participate in the arts and aesthetic experiences, and how this knowledge can improve our physical and mental health, help us learn and flourish, and build stronger communities. Prior to founding IAM Lab, Magsamen worked in both the private and public sector, developing social impact programs and products addressing all stages of life — from early childhood to the senior years.