IDEAS xLab
Leveraging the power of arts, culture, and the creative industries to frame, seed, and scale innovation in health and wellbeing.
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Our Emotional Wellbeing

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About Our Emotional Wellbeing (OEW) — a 2-year initiative organized by IDEAS xLab, and designed to support the hope and belonging of young people (12 – 20 year olds) through an arts-based collaboration.

Youth-serving partner organizations included Louisville Youth Group (LGBTQ+ young people under 21) and two after school programs - Justice League and Bates Memorial Kingdom Academy - at Meyzeek Middle School in Louisville’s Smoketown neighborhood.

In Spring 2019, a group of Louisville artists were identified and introduced to the young people who were able to learn about their artistic practices, and then select artists they wanted to collaborate with.

Summer 2019 included Artist Training with support from University of Louisville’s Center for Creative Placehealing. The training focused on hope theory, sense of belonging research, and youth development approaches.

The artists worked with the IDEAS xLab team and partner organizations to develop arts activities that launched in August-September 2019 with the young people. The focus areas of the activities evolved over time as the youth determined what they wanted to work toward. At Louisville Youth Group, this was a self-expression, pride, and identity fashion show. At Meyzeek, it was an iMovie centered on bullying with a specific focus on racism, homophobia, sexism, cyber bullying and mental health.

Throughout the process, University of Louisville’s Center for Creative Placehealing collected both qualitative and quantitative data to understand the impact of the project on hope and belonging and opportunities for further research within the field.

The Our Emotional Wellbeing activities took place at Meyzeek on Wednesdays from 2:30-4pm, and with Louisville Youth Group the first Friday and second Wednesday evening of each month.

After months of in-person collaborative arts activities, OEW had to be adapted in March 2020 due to COVID-19. The Fashion Show was initially postponed and ultimately canceled. Instagram live and Zoom sessions were hosted to continue engaging with youth. The iMovie was completed through primarily virtual collaboration, a physically distanced filming session and 1x1 deliveries of t-shirts created as part of the project.

In Summer - Fall 2020, the Belonging Through Creative Arts Activity Book was developed to distill the learnings and the activities for teachers, artists, and community leaders working with young people.

Our Emotional Wellbeing was made possible by funding from Sutherland Foundation, Brown-Forman, the Kentucky Civic Engagement Table, Gheens Foundation, and an Arts Fund Grant from Louisville Metro Government.

Highlights from the collaboration:

  • 3 artists engaged

  • 90 students and young people (12-20 years old) engaged

  • 25+ artist-led activities including poetry, photography, collage, painting, performance, and more

  • Research partnership and protocol developed with UofL Center for Creative Placehealing, including artists as part of the IRB-approved research team

  • 2 major projects were conceptualized by the young people and artists. Due to COVID-19, one project was completed - the iMovie written, produced and edited by Meyzeek students called “It’s All Bullying: A-War-On-Us”

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Jasemine “Jazzy J” Reed is a poet, writer, and youth advocate. Following her undergraduate career as a Psychology major at Eastern Kentucky University, Jazzy worked with the youth in social services for seven years before submitting to the alignment of her passion for writing. Click here to learn more.

Shawn Wade is creator + artist of - Artistry of a Dreamer, specializing in acrylic painting and custom designs. Wade’s work has been featured on multiple platforms in the fashion industry, further expanding to other avenues. Click here to learn more.

Talesha Wilson is an artist and Louisville, Kentucky native who has dedicated the last 10 years of her life to self-awareness, diversity and inclusion, and community engagement. Click here to learn more.

Have questions about OEW? Feel free to contact the artists at IDEAS xLab to learn more.