By Tori Duym
ArtsHealth Mercer, a coalition of arts and culture based organizations in the Mercer County area, hosts several events per week for five dollars and under.
One of their most popular hosting locations is West Windsor Arts, where Aylin Green serves as executive director. In an interview with Green, who has a background in art and education, she revealed that ArtsMercer was launched as a coalition in 2023.
As Green stated, through this network of organizations, individuals throughout Mercer county are given the opportunity to interact and make connections with new people, while exploring their creativity. The tie between mental health and art is a prominent one that Green said she has seen “through many conversations and real life accounts,” both at their events and in her role as a teacher.
According to the ArtsHealth Mercer website, the several organizations included in their coalition host events year-round as a part of their mission to improve mental health through an artistic outlet. Although these events are year-round, there is a special spotlight on the month of November, with a few additional events “promoting health and healing,” since November is Arts & Health month.
When asked about the impact of art on mental health in the community, Green shared a story about an event where youth had the chance to explore several different mediums of art, and one young teenager whose entire demeanor changed when she began letting herself have artistic freedom.
“As soon as she got some clay in her hands, she opened up and she brightened up and I just saw this complete switch,” Green said.
She described this moment as one of her favorite memories from one of the countless events that she has attended.
Green also shared that she holds a personal connection to art and has witnessed the correlation between creativity and mental health improvement firsthand.
“I know what it means for me as an individual, it’s such an important part of my life, but through the course of my life,” Green said. “I have also gotten to see how it’s impacted others over time as well.”
She also explained that this coalition has created a more widespread opportunity for the Mercer County community to explore this outlet, all in an accessible and affordable way. The spaces provided by ArtsHealth Mercer accommodate events of all sizes and welcomes groups both large and small.
ArtsHealth Mercer offers a wide variety of events, ranging from ballet dancing and knitting to drawing and poetry. Some programs are ongoing, happening monthly or several times a month. One such program is Dancing in The Dark, which Green described as a “safe space for everybody and every body to dance.”
The lights are turned low and people are free to dance however they may want to, without the fear of judgment. This event costs five dollars and occurs at least once a month. Green shared that this is one her favorite events to attend and it seems to be popular with the community.
ArtsHealth Mercer offers opportunities across the community at very affordable or no cost. These events showcase the benefits of mental health improvements seen by members of the coalition first-hand. Individuals of all ages are welcomed across the several events offered monthly.
Certain events require a registration prior to the start of the event, which can be found on the ArtsHealth Mercer website. The “Calendar” tab provides more information on each event, along with a full list of upcoming events.
“Because of the work that we do creating arts programs for the community, we regularly hear stories from them about what the arts have meant for them in their lives,” Green said.