Visual Arts and Health

Art Historian, former Director of the Art and Medical Humanities Laboratory - Faculty of Pharmacy and Medicine, Highly Qualified Expert - Adjunct Professor with Special Pedagogy Master's Degree Course in Nursing Sciences 'A' - Sapienza University of Rome. An expert in cultural heritage and learning, she has been conducting research since 2014 in the field of education in the medical and health sector, in schools and for the promotion of inclusion and well-being using art.

The Medical Humanities, and thus the arts, have been considered important disciplines within the framework of Basic and Continuing Education in the medical and health care sector to promote the bio-psycho-social model. Since 2014, an experiment in Italy began applying the Visual Thinking Strategies (VTS) method, and when used in conjunction with other practices, it attempts to boost the learning process and reduce stress for students on the Medicine and Nursing Sciences courses at Sapienza - University of Rome, for the specific training of general medicine and for Continuing Medical Education (CME) for healthcare personnel. This method, along with other practices such as iconodiagnostics and application to clinical images involved the teachings of Clinical Methodology in line with Evidence- Based Medicine and those of Public Health and Pathological Anatomy. The design and validation of a VTSKill grid made it possible to measure the positive impact and thus assess the usefulness of these methods on training and reducing stress in care staff.

Physician, general surgeon, researcher at the Sapienza University of Rome. Teaching of clinical methodology and surgery in medical and nursing degree courses Responsible for Erasmus exchanges

President of the Italian Society of Medical Pedagogy (SIPeM) until 2018. As a nationally recognised expert, he has led and continues to lead Faculty Development events for Sapienza and many Italian courses.

For many years, the C Degree course of the Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry has adopted a longitudinal approach to the teaching of Clinical Methodology, from the third to the fifth year. The most relevant part of the course is in the third year, based on the pedagogical and epistemological principles summarised in the motto 'I Observe-Describe-Interpret'. The course is 'flipped', and makes use of in-class exercises aimed at exercising the skills of the motto, as well as developing a sense of complexity and multi-morbidity.

The integration of VTS in this context was natural and proved effective. In the fourth and fifth years, VTS are then offered as electives. A longitudinal study conducted on the same cohort of students from the third to the fifth year demonstrated the effectiveness of VTS in visual recognition and critical thinking skills, measured with validated instruments. By the end of the third year, scores had increased for everyone and those who continued to practise VTS until the fifth year maintained higher scores than those who did not attend the electives.

Semir Zeki is Professor of Neuroaesthetics at University College London, having previously held the Chair of Neurobiology there. He specialised in charting the organization of the human visual brain and, since 2008, has contributed to our understanding of the brain mechanisms engaged during emotional experiences, including the experiences of beauty, love, desire and hate – within a field of which he is the founder, namely the field of neuroaesthetics.

The lecture will address, in a neurobiological context, Clive Bell’s seminal question of what is common to all that is experienced as beautiful. Bell believed that the answer to that question will essentially solve the problem of aesthetics.

David Tremlett (b. 1945, St Austell, Cornwall) is an artist working in different media, such as sculpture, installation and drawing.

Right from the early stages of his career, he experimented with 'Wall Drawings': in situ works, sometimes on the walls of ruined buildings he came across during his travels, or on the walls of galleries and museums. The artist succeeds in completely appropriating space through the technique of hand-painted pastel or mural painting, thus breaking the traditional distinction between painting, sculpture and architecture.

A discourse/discussion on art and its place and role within changes to environment, society, architecture, reuse and renovation, personal dreams.

Coordinator of the course and member of the Advisory Board of IBSA Foundation for scientific research.. Over the last 15 years, he has worked extensively in the fields of art, culture and health with a wide range of scientific publications, seminars and university courses. Since 2012, he has been Scientific Director of the ‘Villa Santa Maria’ Foundation in Tavernerio (Como) and of the Institute of the same name, a home for children and adolescents suffering from neuropsychiatric disorders. Since 2016 he has been Scientific Advisor for the Bracco Foundation, Milan. He has authored more than 500 publications listed on Google Scholar and more than 200 listed on PubMed.

Many museums are shifting their mission and role from centres for learning and education to centres for individual and social well-being. A whole series of qualitative as well as quantitative and randomised studies suggest that museums promote health and well-being in several ways: through positive social experiences that reduce isolation, promote a sense of relaxation and reduce anxiety, trigger positive emotions, and improve self-esteem and a sense of identity. In the health sector, museum visits are associated with an increased quality of life, especially in individuals with dementia, also allowing better communication between caregivers and patients. On the physiological side, experimental data show that museum visits lower systolic blood pressure and heart rate. This is paving the way for the design of experiences that can enhance the lives of visitors by helping them improve their well-being.

Christoph Frank (born in 1963) lives in Basel, the city of his birth. He is a historian and a convinced European and Basilean. He grew up on the Rhine. He has spent most of his life studying, working and living in cities such as London, Paris, Berlin, Rome and New York, as well as in Moscow and St. Petersburg in the wake of 1989. Since 2005/06 he works at the Accademia di architettura of the Università della Svizzera italiana in Mendrisio, where, in addition to his teaching and research activities, he has also served as scientific director of the library from the outset. Conceived as a research library, it is now one of the most extensive of its kind in Switzerland and far beyond. In 2011, he founded the Istituto di storia e teoria dell'arte e dell'architettura (ISA), which he only hopes will survive these times, like the library. In addition to several academic posts, for the time being he is also a member of the University Council of USI.

There are times when one could claim that everything, we have learned from history so far is merely what we have not yet learned from it. By contrast, the example of Basel and its unparalleled “Universitätsgut” (university heritage), as all the patrimonial collections that stand at the origins of the university library, the Kunstmuseum, the historical museum, but also the many other university related scientific collections, are called there, is to show how today's “City of Life Sciences” could come about. Basel is well known for being the home of the oldest university in Switzerland, founded by Pope Pius II Piccolomini in 1460/61, some forty years before the city joined the Confederation. The Renaissance and the humanism that went with it have had a profound impact on its urban development in the broadest sense, as we shall see below. It is thanks to these cultural transmissions, that despite its population of just over 200,000 (as of August 2024), Basel may be considered a small town, and yet it isn’t a Kleinstadt. Even in the Middle Ages, it had palatium and civitas, which through their interplay would continuously make it an extraordinary political, religious and cultural center. Its “triangular” topography at the crossroads between Switzerland, Germany and France, its multilingualism and its often-interconfessional attitude, as well as its open permeability, make it an almost unparalleled city in the center of Europe. In exemplary fashion, it is a small confederation within the larger one, and in its fields of art and science, it is a global player. Science (formerly limited and only made possible at all by the printing press, for which Basel achieved worldwide fame in the early sixteenth century) and artistic production have been closely intertwined here since the beginning. A few scientific and artistic objects from Basel institutions, as well as their history and reception, will be used to show how close the relationship between medical professionals and artists has always been, and why art has been able to achieve such great importance for the well-being of the inhabitants of this small city, which is not a Kleinstadt. For comparison, certain works of art and objects outside the Basel orbit are also included in our consideration. In all cases, the lecturer has repeatedly seen the originals, and each time he has recorded his changing perceptions. He has no doubt that art, in addition to a variety of functions, can also have a profound therapeutic and cathartic effect on our well-being.

Roberta Pedrinis graduated in Literature and Philosophy from Umberto Eco’s
DAMS in Bologna. A school teacher and trainer, she graduated as an art therapist
in France. She carried out pilot research at the Novaggio Rehabilitation Clinic (CH)
with cancer patients and chronic pain. She works as a psychotherapist at the
Atelier del Lupo Blu in Tesserete (CH) and collaborates with various institutions in
the oncological and psychiatric fields. She is president of the Ticino Arts Therapists
Association: ARTE-SI. www.adhikara.com/roberta-pedrinis

Art has been questioning man since the dawn of time. Scientific evidence is bringing increasing attention to the therapeutic use of the arts. But can art really heal us? How can art, therapy and psychology be combined? What professional figures and skills are required for the practice of these disciplines today? What are the boundaries between wellness, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation? Roberta Pedrinis, art therapist and psychotherapist, will attempt to answer these questions.

Full Professor of Clinical and Health Psychology (M-PSI-08), teaches in the
Master’s Degree Course in Clinical Psychology at the Department of Human and
Social Sciences at the University of Bergamo (IT). He was the Director of the
postgraduate Master’s Degree Course in ‘Multidimensional Psychological
Assessment and Intervention Techniques in the Socio-Health Care Context’.
Ph.D. in Psychology, Università Cattolica di Milano (Catholic University of Milan).
Graduated with 110/110 cum laude in Psychology from the Università Cattolica
di Milano and awarded the ‘Agostino Gemelli Prize - Best Graduate of the Year’.
Visiting Professor at the Department of Psychology at Boston College USA,
Clinical Psychology Unit at University College London in the UK, Clinical
Psychology Department at Leiden University Nederland, Psychology
Department at British Columbia University, Vancouver Canada.

Art therapy can be an effective complement to psychotherapy, offering several benefits that enrich the therapeutic process. Here are some ways in which art therapy can help:

• Non-verbal expression: Art therapy encourages patients to express thoughts and emotions that may be difficult to verbalise. This can be particularly helpful for children, people with communication difficulties or those who have suffered trauma.
• Stress reduction: Artistic activity has a calming effect and can reduce stress and anxiety levels. The creative process can help patients to relax and find a sense of peace.
• Development of self-awareness: Through art, patients can explore and better understand their own emotions, thoughts and behaviour. This can facilitate greater self-awareness and promote personal growth.
• Processing trauma: Art therapy can help patients process past traumas in a safe and controlled way. The artistic process can serve as a vehicle to express painful experiences and begin the journey of healing.
• Improved coping skills: Art therapy can teach patients new strategies to cope with stress, anxiety and other difficulties. Through the creative process, patients can develop problem-solving skills and resilience.
• Facilitating communication: Art can act as a communicative bridge between therapist and patient, facilitating the sharing and exploration of deep issues. This can create a more collaborative and open therapeutic environment.
• Stimulation of creativity: The creativity stimulated by art therapy can positively affect other areas of patients' lives, improving their ability to adapt and find innovative solutions to problems.
• Emotional support: The process of artistic creation can provide a sense of achievement and boost self-esteem, thus improving the mood and general well-being of patients. In short, art therapy can be a powerful complementary tool to psychotherapy, offering alternative ways to explore and address emotional and psychological challenges. There are several scientific findings that support the effectiveness of art therapy as a complement to psychotherapy.

Coordinator of the course and member of the Advisory Board of IBSA Foundation for scientific research. Over the last 15 years, he has worked extensively in the fields of art, culture and health with a wide range of scientific publications, seminars and university courses. Since 2012, he has been Scientific Director of the ‘Villa Santa Maria’ Foundation in Tavernerio (Como) and of the Institute of the same name, a home for children and adolescents suffering from neuropsychiatric disorders. Since 2016 he has been Scientific Advisor for the Bracco Foundation, Milan. He has authored more than 500 publications listed on Google Scholar and more than 200 listed on PubMed.

Art therapy uses the creative process of making art through various expressive media with a professional facilitator to improve mental, emotional and physical well-being.

It is based on the idea that the creative process of artistic self-expression helps people develop interpersonal skills, resolve conflicts, boost self-esteem, reduce stress and become more aware.

There are some sixty randomised studies attesting to the efficacy of art therapy with varying degrees of strength of evidence and in different pathological contexts, such as dementia, post-traumatic stress, depression and a whole range of cognitive disorders. Qualitative studies also suggest that art therapy engages attention and pleasure and improves neuropsychiatric symptoms, social behaviour and self-esteem. The resulting picture is rather complex, but bodes well for further consolidation of the scientific basis.

Gianna Carla Riccitelli, Neuroscientist, currently Head of the Local Research Unit at EOC Istituto di Neuroscienze Cliniche della Svizzera Italiana (EOC Institute of Clinical Neuroscience of Italian Switzerland) and Lecturer at the Faculty of Biomedical Sciences of USI, is an expert on the brain mechanisms responsible for the processing of cognitive, emotional and behavioural processes in humans. She is currently studying treatment protocols with advanced brain stimulation techniques in drug-resistant patients.

Through creative expression, art therapy promotes mental well-being by involving different brain mechanisms. Artistic creation stimulates the prefrontal cortex, responsible for critical thinking and emotional regulation, and the limbic system, which governs emotions.

Artistic activity increases the production of dopamine, a neurotransmitter linked to pleasure and motivation, improving mood and reducing stress. Art therapy also promotes neuroplasticity, i.e. the brain's ability to reorganise itself, promoting new neuronal connections. These effects prove useful in the treatment of neurological and psychiatric diseases.

Art therapy helps patients with anxiety disorders or depression to reduce symptoms by improving emotional regulation and reducing levels of the stress hormone cortisol. In cases of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's, art therapy can improve cognitive function and quality of life by stimulating memory and social interaction. In addition, in post-traumatic stress disorder, it promotes trauma processing and emotional recovery.

Coordinator of the course and member the Advisory Board of IBSA Foundation for scientific research. Over the last 15 years, he has worked extensively in the fields of art, culture and health with a wide range of scientific publications, seminars and university courses. Since 2012, he has been Scientific Director of the ‘Villa Santa Maria’ Foundation in Tavernerio (Como) and of the Institute of the same name, a home for children and adolescents suffering from neuropsychiatric disorders. Since 2016 he has been Scientific Advisor for the Bracco Foundation, Milan. He has authored more than 500 publications listed on Google Scholar and more than 200 listed on PubMed.

The results of a number of qualitative and quantitative studies suggest that figurative and abstract art can have positive effects on the well-being of hospitalised patients, their families and carers. Art as a form of distraction has proven useful during and after painful procedures or during chronic pain therapy and on the control of anxiety and depression. The opportunity to choose artwork in one's own room can further enhance the effects on patient satisfaction, feelings of self-control and distraction through attractive stimuli. For social areas and public halls, a mixture of abstract and figurative art seems to be adequate to satisfy various interests, promote social interaction and avoid mental deprivation by providing multiple sensory stimuli. For operations, studies suggest instead the use of natural scenes, which are acceptable to most patients.

Born in Caldaro (Kaltern) in South Tyrol (1961), he studied architecture at IUAV in Venice. In 1992 he co-founded A5 architekten, and in 2002 he founded Angonese Walter Architekt based in Caldaro. He teaches as a visiting professor at several European universities, and since 2007 at the USI Academy of Architecture, where he has been director since 2021. In 2011, he was appointed full professor of design. His projects are published and recognised internationally. He lives between Caldaro and Mendrisio.

What is commonly called an idea is often nothing more than intuition. Building an idea is a lot more complex

Prof. Grotzer is full professor of paediatrics at the University of Zurich. Since 2018, he has been serving as Medical Director of Kinderspital Zurich. In addition to his specialization in paediatrics, he is also specialised in paediatric oncology. He spent three years as a research fellow at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (USA) and has been the recipient of numerous awards for his research activities. He is currently in the process of moving the children’s hospital to a new building (by Herzog & de Meuron).

Over the past two decades, there has been a major increase in research into the effects of the arts on health and well-being. Results from over 3000 studies identified a major role for the arts in the prevention of ill health, promotion of health, and management and treatment of illness across the lifespan (Fancourt D et al).

The University Children’s Hospital of Zurich has a holistic approach towards health: physical, social and psychological. The well-being of our young patients is at the heart of the treatment, regardless of their gender, religion and social background. The well-orchestrated implicit knowledge of children and adolescents and their family members is what makes the Children’s Hospital of Zurich what it is: a unique place where dedicated doctors, care and therapy staff meet sick children and adolescents from different backgrounds in their everyday work. Thanks to the most modern diagnostic and therapeutic methods many diseases can be cured or at least brought to a level with good quality of life.

For the first time, the world-famous Basel architects Herzog & de Meuron are building on the Zurich square. By November 2024, Herzog & de Meuron will have finished a new building for the Zurich Children's Hospital, consisting of the southern acute hospital and the northern research and teaching building. In addition to the functional aspect of the hospital, site-specific moments arise in the two buildings in which architecture enters a dialogue with contemporary art. Art will be an effective source of energy for patients, their families and employees in the children's hospital. It is intended to connect, delight, comfort, strengthen, stimulate and inspire.

Coordinator of the course and the Advisory Board of IBSA Foundation for scientific research. Over the last 15 years, he has worked extensively in the fields of art, culture and health with a wide range of scientific publications, seminars and university courses. Since 2012, he has been Scientific Director of the ‘Villa Santa Maria’ Foundation in Tavernerio (Como) and of the Institute of the same name, a home for children and adolescents suffering from neuropsychiatric disorders. Since 2016 he has been Scientific Advisor for the Bracco Foundation, Milan. He has authored more than 500 publications listed on Google Scholar and more than 200 listed on PubMed.

The number of scientific studies on 'Cinema Therapy' has increased greatly in recent years, confirming a new interest in the topic in the medical field. These scientific articles range from the use of cinema to prevent suicidal thoughts to its educational uses, such as teaching the principles of palliative care, but also in the treatment of memory and dementia as well as in the non-pharmacological treatment of schizophrenia or for preparing people for unpleasant examinations such as colonoscopy in order to reduce pain and compliance during the course of the examination. Over the years, the use of video clips and/or actual films has gained recognition as a bona fide Complementary Therapy. As such, it is useful for managing symptoms that are difficult to control pharmacologically, ranging from pain to depression, from quality of life to the relationship with one's illness, from reducing anxiety to improving memory and attention.

She founded Medicinema Italia at the end of 2012, and she is its President. Previously worked in the profit sector for companies such as BMG Ariola, Ideal Standard, Eni, and then News Corporation (Manager of International News Corporation in the cinema sector, as Director of Marketing Home Video, and Director of alternative channels in Europe and Latin America) and later as Communication and Marketing consultant for the TV sector. She did her studies at the Milan Polytechnic and specialised in advertising technology and business development.

Cinema and art in rehabilitation pathways? The challenge of Cinema Therapy applied to scientific research with measurement of induced benefits becomes a new Bio-Psycho-Social Model.