Culture Dose for kids with mild anxiety
Sundays, 20 October - 8 December, 10am - 12pm

Engagement with the arts can help young people connect to their feelings, thoughts and imagination. It can also build self-confidence and resilience, foster social connections and improve mental health and wellbeing.

Culture Dose for Kids is an eight-week arts engagement program for kids aged 9 – 12 with mild anxiety. Parents/carers play a vital supporting role in this program and are invited to participate in CDK simultaneously in a different space. The program consists of two parts: a guided slow look at artworks in the gallery, followed by an hour of playful art creation.

Culture Dose for Kids will provide a safe, structured space for kids and their parents or carers to engage with and respond creatively to curated artworks in a small group setting. Led by artists educators Aaron McGarry and Aviva Reed, the program will be held over eight consecutive weeks starting between 20 October and 8 December 2024.

This program is free, but registration is essential and applicants must fill in an expression of interest to be accepted. Please submit an EOI here. Art materials, resources, and morning tea will be provided. 

About our facilitators
Aaron McGarry earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts with a specialization in sculpture from the National Art School in Sydney in 2021. His artistic journey has taken him through various exhibitions across Australia, and his artistic talents have been recognized through commissions for public art installations. Beyond creating captivating artwork, Aaron is deeply committed to fostering community engagement through online and in-person workshops. During the challenging times of the pandemic, Aaron channelled his passion for art into initiatives to promote mental health and well-being, particularly among isolated seniors. He developed and spearheaded several successful programs that provided therapeutic outlets and culminated in exhibitions, ensuring a meaningful experience for the participating artists and the wider community.

Aviva Reed is a transdisciplinary visual ecologist. She is a core member of the Small Friends Books team (published by CSIRO Publishing) and a co-designer and facilitator of workshops inspired by these award-winning publications, which explore the world of microbes. Aviva self-published "Eon, the Story of the Fossils" in 2017. This illustrated book explores what we can learn from billions of years of being part of an evolving ecosystem. Aviva presents workshops using techniques such as art making, storytelling, and hands-on eco-literacy to explore complexity. 

Culture Dose for Kids is part of a research study program funded by the Jibb Foundation in collaboration with the Art Gallery of NSW and the Black Dog Institute.