Invisible M*ther
Invisible M*ther is a collaborative piece by Rebecca Livesey-Wright and Indra Wilson, commissioned by the Mental Health Foundation for the 2024 Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival. The piece uses polyvocal writing techn…
SMHAF Podcast
The SMHAF Podcast is an audio extension of the year-round arts programme led by the Mental Health Foundation Scotland. It draws its inspiration and content from the annual Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival, a major global event that has been enriching Scotland's cultural landscape since 2007. In this podcast, you'll hear from the artists, organizers, and participants who make this diverse festival happen. The conversations explore the creative processes behind the festival's wide-ranging programme, which includes music, film, visual art, theatre, dance, and literature, all connected through the lens of mental health. Episodes might feature a director discussing a new play, a musician explaining how composition relates to wellbeing, or a visual artist sharing the story behind an exhibition. It’s a space to listen in on thoughtful discussions about how artistic expression and mental health dialogue intersect, offering a deeper, more personal look at the festival's impact beyond the event dates. The SMHAF Podcast provides a lasting, intimate connection to the festival's community and ideas, making the powerful work of the Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival accessible anytime.
Episodes
Wax and Wane
Wax and Wane is a vocal exploration of the shifting nature of tics within the body, transforming from physical motion to vocal expressions, varying in complexity and intensity throughout the artist's life. Tics, particul…
Sit Still
Sit Still is a choral composition for four voices that delves into society's assumption that stillness comes naturally. It challenges the notion that movement—such as fidgeting or wriggling—is a sign of disengagement, im…
Flutter
Flutter explores the constant interruption of Tourette’s to everyday life, through small sounds as well as the shame which can be experienced when experiencing tics. A collection of erratic, arhythmic voclisations are co…
Premonitory Urges
Premonitory Urges is a sonic exploration of the sensation experienced by Tourette’s sufferers which is an overwhelming sensation to perform a tic, an experience similar to the urge to blink. This work uses sound and voic…
Silent Men & Men Don't Talk: Duncan Cowles meets Clare Prenton
Two of the big events at the 2024 Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival are Men Don’t Talk, a play written by Clare Prenton which tours Scotland from 18 November, and Silent Men, a documentary by film-maker Duncan Cowles…
Performing Anxiety: Nye Russell Thompson interview
Performing Anxiety: Nye Russell Thompson interview by Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival
Quiet Revolution
Reflecting light and stillness, and the process of creativity and the essential part this can play in all of our wellbeing. Some Revolutions are ongoing, peaceful, and very quiet. This track is by Talking Heads volunteer…
Hysterical!
Listen to this podcast by Talking Heads volunteer Kirsty Ann-Watters, featuring an interview with koi collective members Sally MacAlister, Grace Baker, Zara Louise Kennedy, and Evie Mortimer about their new play Hysteric…
Listen In On The Conversation A Creative Revolution In Mental Healthcare (Made By Headliner)
As part of the Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival, the University of Glasgow hosted Rebirth and Revolution: the Life and Legacy of Mary Barnes to mark the artist and mental health campaigner’s centenary year. At the la…
