Dimensions of European Wellness: Contemporary Design and the Visions of Life and the Self: `The New Apothecary´s Cabinet No.2´ Mind-Body-Spirit

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  • Presentation speakers
    • Alison Oddey, University of Derby, United Kingdom
    • Christine White, University of Derby, United Kingdom
  • Download presentation
    • Alison Oddey and Christine White - Dimensions of European Wellness - Contemporary Design and the Visions of Life and the Self - The New Apothecary’s Cabinet II.pdf

  Abstract:

  This is a devised, interactive Art Installation, which investigates a new apothecary´s cabinet as a piece of contemporary furniture, in collaboration with designer Chris White and maker Steve Smith, using machine-made systems, different types of material and wood, reflecting both old and new. `Citizens must now play an active role in managing their own health, making daily choices on exercise, diet and self-medication´ (EPPOSI Barometer: Consumer perceptions of self care in Europe, October 2013) It is based on the Foresight Project´s `Five Ways to Well-being´, which concluded that five steps incorporated into daily life can fortify mental health and can contribute to a more productive, fulfilling life, as well as a UK survey published by BUPA in 2015 that it is the simple things in life which make us smile. The Cabinet is a provocation to the viewer to interact with the 24 drawers, to connect, be active, be curious, learn and give. There are health gains within the sensory experiences of all drawers to enrich life, bring support, feel good, maintain mobility, appreciate what matters in life, feel satisfied with confidence boosted and rewards of helping others to be happy within the community. The viewer is invited to be creative, to smile and laugh, to experience some feel-good moments in their day, in order to improve and maintain their health, to revive and restore their mind-body-spirit in smells, tastes, listening, touching and new ways of seeing. This project forms part of a sustained programme of research `The Cultural Value of the Arts for Health & Well-Being´, which employs methods and processes across Art and Science, designed to test and transform perceptions of what it is to live well and be happy, raising public awareness and engagement, to stimulate sustainable, social and cultural debate and significant public dialogue across Europe.

 

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