Building Circles of Support Through Art
By Wendy Singer
Models of community care are evident through history, most evidently in Indigenous cultures. While Judith Snow or PLAN’s models take root in the family’s network, others can be structured in less formal ways.
Dr. Janis Timm-Bottos is an associate professor of Creative Art Therapies at Concordia University and principal investigator of the university’s engAGE Creative Living Lab. Throughout her career as an art therapist, she has developed a tremendous body of work that centres around building relationships through the collaborative creation of art. She is known for coining the term “Art Hive;” a creative, welcoming space that fosters inclusion, community, respect and learning through the creation of art.
Art Hives embody many characteristics of Circles of Support. They bring people together despite financial situation, age or ability. Timm-Bottos sees how people who might not otherwise have met can easily connect and support each other through a third element, in this case, art. “Healing, health and well-being are relational. The work doesn’t happen just within each of us, it’s between us,” she said.
“The studio relationships created are important and deep, but it happens at the studio. You don’t have to become best friends or be intimate with someone you create art with. But when you meet regularly with people in a creative space it’s a comfort to know that you have a place to go when you need help. It’s a deepening of the Circles of Support model,” said Timm-Bottos.
For information or to find an Art Hive in the Greater Montreal area, visit arthives.org
