Brookings Arts Council
About Brookings Arts Council
Encouraging community connections through the arts by providing a supportive environment for awareness, appreciation, and participation.
Art Factory
The Art Factory is a day service opportunity for the developmentally and physically disabled population of Brookings.
Our mission is to not only provide an art therapy type situation, but to encourage individual artistic expression and personal style in an environment that engages each artist in the creative process. We provide our artists the opportunity to earn an income from the sale of their artwork.
The Art Factory program is designed to build fine motor and problem solving skills, enhance communication and expression, promote self-esteem and motivation to succeed.
Our staff, along with staff from ADVANCE, instruct and introduce the artists to different mediums and projects. The artists will create their own ‘voice’ and work from inspiration boxes within their areas of interest. The funds we are requesting from United Way will assist us in obtaining varied art materials for the projects that these art pieces will be created with, and to pay for a trained educator passionate about teaching artists with disabilities.
Mental Health Coalition Art Break
Mental Health Coalition Art Break is a program in connection with Avera Behavioral Health as well as the school counselors, domestic abuse shelter, other non profits, food insecurity groups in which money will be used to host free art classes to be used in conjunction with therapy and provide a mental health break. These classes would be open to anyone referred to the Arts Council and are Free. Art therapy/mental health art breaks improve the mental health of people who are dealing with addictions, anxiety, attention disorders, grief and loss, dementia, depression, eating disorders, physical illness, PTSD, trauma, relationship issues and much more.
Mental health art breaks can be used as a complement to traditional mental health treatment. The aim is to manage behaviors, process feelings, reduce stress and anxiety, and increase self-esteem and the improve the mental health of our community.
