On Reducing Stigma Through Art

In 2016, Megan's brother died of an overdose. After years of her own struggles with mental health (bipolar and anxiety), she was faced with a choice —  either focus on what she had lost or focus on how much she gained through knowing him. This perspective shift changed everything.

In January 2017, she started experimenting with meditation, exercise, mindset practices, and healthy eating. These changes had an unbelievable impact on her quality of life and productivity. She wanted to share what she learned in hopes that it might help others. 

Coming from a fine art background, having worked in a commercial, institutional and non-profit capacity, she decided to use her skills and expertise to give back. In May 2018, she incorporated a non-profit called Twentytwenty Arts that raises awareness and visibility for mental health, homelessness, and addiction. She now advocates alongside her amazing community through artistic campaigns, conversations and collaborations.

Combining the creative process and psychotherapy, art therapy facilitates self-exploration and understanding. Whether artists utilize their artistic practice as a form of therapy or use it to convey complex ideas about mental health, the mutually beneficial relationship between mental health and creativity is undeniable. In this series, we will explore how art can be beneficial as a medium of mental health expression, the impact it can have on yourself and others, and where to begin.

As Georgia O’Keefe once said, “Whether you succeed or not is irrelevant, there is no such thing. Making your unknown known is the important thing–and keeping the unknown always beyond you.” Arguably, how—and that—you create is more important than what you create. 

Hosted by Megan Kee, the Founder of Twentytwenty Arts, an organization producing art projects to raise awareness for mental health, homelessness and addiction, this series aims to explore the crucial role that art can play in reducing mental health stigma and allowing us to make the unknown known.