Northern State Medical University’s project “Intergenerational Practices of Art and Fairy Tale Therapy for Improving Mental Health and the Northern Identity” (Russia). Children with borderline mental disorders in Russia are often brought up by one mother with the traditional help of grandparents. Sometimes three generations cohabitate together. The project team will provide intergenerational social and psychological help based on the personalised usage of fine art methods that allow to improve the state of mental health disorders that are difficult to assess using other resources. Due to their non-verbal nature, visual expression allows different generations in the family to rebuild their relationships and use alternative ways of interaction.

The novelty of the project is: development and justification of a new direction of scientific and practical activity – personified intergenerational socio-psychological art therapy which includes elements of fairy tale therapy based on northern identity into intergenerational socio-psychological art therapy.The project will consist of cycles of classes with children and adults on the partner’s bases (including the exhibition named “Artistic Arctic Development”).

Project partners: Northern State Medical University (NSMU) including  Department of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology, University of the Third Age,  Mentally Ill Creativity Museum;  The Museum “Art Culture of the Russian North”; Thule Institute, Oulu University.