Vicki Smith | Good Medicine
Vicki Smith | Good Medicine
May 4-25, 2023
350 Dundas Street W., Toronto
Opening Reception Thursday, May 4, 5-7 pm | Artist in Attendance
This May, we are thrilled to present Good Medicine, the highly-anticipated solo exhibition by Toronto painter, Vicki Smith. Reflecting on her most recent body of work, Smith states,
"Engaging with the Arts has a significant and measurable positive effect on health and well-being. Whether through visual art, music, movement, or creative writing, we gain a method of communication and introspection that would otherwise fall short if left simply to words. Art is a powerful conduit for working through trauma, memory, and expressing emotions.
"With the field of Art Therapy being formally created almost a century ago, the therapeutic effects of art engagement, such as relieving stress and depression, decreasing anxiety and increasing positive emotions, have become increasingly supported throughout the world around us. In 2019, The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts partnered with Médecins Francophones Du Canada allowing physicians to write prescriptions for free museum visits. That same year, after the Alliance of Healthier Communities initiated the Social Prescription Pilot Program which allowed Ontario doctors, nurses, and social workers to write a prescription for free admission to local Art Galleries and Museums, the Art Gallery of Ontario and Royal Ontario Museum began to participate in this holistic treatment plan; opening their doors in the name of health and well-being.
"The Arts, physical health, and mental well-being have become synonymous in my regard as my own dedicated practice of meditation and holistic care are deeply entwined with my studio practice. One is rooted in the other and vice versa; because of this, I believe what comes out on the canvas is good for me and good for the viewer, because Art is Good Medicine."
- Vicki Smith, 2023