Healing Arts Chicago: Embedding creativity in community health
PROJECT: Training local artists to deliver wellbeing activities across seven city clinics
Through cross-sector partnership between city culture, health and labour departments, Healing Arts Chicago has trained local artists as certified Community Health Workers through training at City Colleges of Chicago and through apprenticeships. These artists bring a human-centered approach to healthcare delivery.
A cross-sector model of cultural and public health collaboration
Launched through American Rescue Plan federal funding, Healing Arts Chicago represents an intergovernmental partnership between the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE), the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH), and City Colleges of Chicago. The programme links culture, health, and education sectors to embed creativity within care systems.
Artists train in community clinics while becoming certified Community Health Workers (CHWs). This model not only integrates the proven therapeutic benefits of arts engagement into healthcare but also redefines the role of the artist as an essential contributor to public health and urban resilience.
Building new pathways for creative workers
Healing Arts Chicago is also an Illinois Department of Labor registered apprenticeship programme, granting participants a recognised credential valued by future employers. Between 2023 and 2025, ten artists completed apprenticeships and CHW certification, delivering over 3,000 hours of arts-based health programming across seven city mental health clinics.
Through training supported by City Colleges of Chicago, these artists gain both public health knowledge and applied creative facilitation skills, enabling them to act as bridges between cultural and clinical worlds. Their work transforms clinics into spaces of connection and creativity, demonstrating the vital role of cultural workers in civic recovery and public health innovation.
These creative professionals supported both patient recovery and staff wellness through workshops, performances, and participatory arts experiences. Entering its third year, the City of Chicago will launch a second artist cohort in 2026, continuing to expand this innovative model of cultural policy and health integration.
Artists as catalysts for human-centred healing
Healing Arts Chicago challenges rigid clinical structures by introducing human-centred approaches grounded in creativity, empathy, and lived experience. As one artist reflected, “People think of art therapy as very formal and structured… this program creates alternative ways of thinking and models that embed into already structured systems,”Natalia, HAC Artist CHW. Clients have reported personal growth, empowerment, and skill development, including new coping mechanisms, calming techniques, and shifts in how they view and use the arts in daily life.
Healing Arts Chicago demonstrates how artistic practices can be seamlessly embedded into care teams to enhance healing, engagement, and wellness.
