White Rock community art show celebrates mental health through lived experience

Expressions, a community art exhibition in White Rock, opens Friday, September 4, from 1 to 5 p.m. at Uptown Gallery, 15140 North Bluff Road in Central Plaza. The show runs through September on Thursdays and Fridays from 1 to 5 p.m., and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The exhibition showcases artwork produced by local residents who live with mental illness and substance abuse challenges. All artist participants are part of either Options Community Services' White Rock Supported Living Program, the Whale House Clubhouse, or the White Rock Mental Health & Substance Use Center operated by Fraser Health.

Options Community Services, a Surrey-based nonprofit, organized the show in partnership with Fraser Health, the Peace Arch Hospital Foundation, and the City of White Rock. The exhibition is a practical demonstration of the reality that everyone has unique strengths, abilities, and the potential to lead meaningful, connected lives in their community.

The art pieces often draw on lived experiences, highlighting both the creativity and self-revelatory courage of artists who choose art as their vehicle for self-expression, therapy, and storytelling. The exhibition celebrates the concept of social inclusion as a way to support recovery, reduce harmful stigmas, and showcase the meaningful contributions of people living with mental illness, through the values and principles of Psychosocial Rehabilitation (PSR).

The community partnership itself is a demonstration of the potential for similar organizations and levels of government to collaborate in promoting inclusion, reducing the stigma around mental illness, and encouraging opportunities for people living with mental illness to participate, contribute, and thrive within their community. Recovery is possible with the right kind of community, connection, and care.