Photography and mental health: an immersive exhibition on youth recovery

How do young people in mental health recovery perceive their journey? And how can art help them express it? As part of a participatory research project led by Emmanuelle Khoury, professor at the Université de Montréal's School of Social Work, a photographic exhibition was organized to explore mental health recovery among young people aged 17 to 35. The vernissage, held in the form of a 5 à 7, aimed to give a voice to young people through their snapshots and written or audio testimonials, becoming a vehicle for listening, recognition and social transformation.

Agence PhDesign was commissioned to support the team in preparing for the event, providing communications strategy, logistical coordination and graphic design.

Combining university research, art and mental health

The aim of this research project was to explore the practice of mental health recovery among young people through photography. Two workshops were conducted with seven young people, inviting them to answer the question "What is mental health recovery?" through the production of photographic snapshots accompanied by their testimonies.

This project aimed to :

Raising public awareness of young people's experience of mental health recovery
Highlighting the voices and views of the young people involved through photography and testimonials
Create an elegant, touching and inclusive event, true to the "classy and chic" theme
Ensure visual and narrative coherence in the presentation of the works

The exhibition: a scenography serving the message

The exhibition featured 24 photographic images taken by young people, accompanied by written or audio testimonials accessible via QR codes. Each of these elements carried the voice of a young person on the meaning of his or her photo in his or her mental health recovery journey.

Turnkey coordination

Agence PhDesign supported the team throughout the various stages of the project:

Logistical organization: print coordination, seating plan, etc.
Scenographic support and advice: display, layout of photographs, etc.
Communication between stakeholders

Tailor-made graphics

To bring the project to life :

Elegant, informative bilingual inserts with titles + QR codes for written or audio testimonials
Bilingual printed and digital brochure, designed to guide visitors through the exhibition

A simple, effective communication strategy

Recommendations for broadcasting the event
Publication calendar, visuals for social networks and strategic reminders

Making voices heard, differently

Through this project, we put our communications expertise at the service of a profoundly human challenge: to make heard the voices of young people who, with strength and sensitivity, shared their vision of recovery.

A project at the crossroads of art, research and social commitment.

"The event was a huge success. Overall, I'm pleased with the interactions and will use PhDesign's services again."

- Emmanuelle Khoury Assistant Professor, UdeM

The impact of Agence PhDesign

For this mandate, we mobilized our expertise in design, strategy and event coordination to :

Promote the project's participatory and artistic approach
Creating an immersive, respectful exhibition experience
Supporting a strong message on young people's mental health
Ensuring smooth, reassuring management for organizing teams

Curious to find out more? Contact us now.

If you don't want to miss any of the latest news about PhDesign and its projects, such as our collaboration with Emmanuelle Khoury, sign up for our newsletter at the bottom of the page and follow us on LinkedIn.