Ever since the pandemic, mental well-being - hauora - finally started to get the focus that it so badly needed.

The bullshit facade of the 'she'll be right' Kiwi attitude finally began to crumble, and mental health was at last out in the open to be confronted and more openly discussed. 

But has the age of emotional enlightenment held strong or been left behind with facemasks and QR code check-ins? SO many organisations and sectors talk the talk with mental health, but do they still walk the walk? With this being Mental Health Awareness week, It's an opportune time to get the pulse of the creative community.

Arts Voices is a series where we canvas a number of Aotearoa creatives to get their thoughts on the issues that the sector faces.

We asked the following question:

How well does the creative sector protect the mental health of those involved in it? What needs to be the priority in that space?

These are their responses.

Dr Maggie Buxton, transdisciplinary activist and practitioner

Protecting mental health is a transdisciplinary exercise. 

It's about supporting individuals and their immediate environments but also confronting the more harmful dynamics and structures within our sector. 

In my view, confusing contradictions, mixed messages, and a lack of integrity in the system are also part of the problem. They resonate within us as much as they do outside us, just as our internal struggles impact our surrounding world.

Creatives are applauded for pushing boundaries and exposing society's wobbly edges, however they are increasingly forced to step away from their practices and into mainstream jobs to survive.

We’re trained to challenge norms but struggle when our sector's standards do not consider us 'successful' or 'relevant'.

Our practices expose hierarchies and break down barriers, yet much of our sector is based on cultural elitism and gatekeeping.

And while our primary funding body promotes sustainability and creative integrity, it depends on money from gambling to survive.

For me, these conflicting dynamics - alongside the complex power and rank issues that prevent them from being openly discussed - also impact mental health.

So, while I know from personal experience that individual intervention is critical and transformative, keeping it at that level or asking others to deal with the problem via the same systems that create it won’t - in my opinion - get us anywhere.

Amber Liberté, choreographer/performer

The creative sector is a complex and nuanced beast, so it’s too difficult to comment on how it looks after people’s mental health overall.

I think prioritising mental health needs various factors, including bigger picture focuses and smaller, daily focuses.

In the larger scheme of how we prioritise things, I think we need to embody the idea that creatives deserve fair remuneration and are essential workers. By integrating this idea into our daily lives, we can inspire confidence and action to advocate for ourselves. 

Whether our creative work is process-focussed, community arts, or larger and more traditional culminations of work, art will always live on and is crucial in times of hardship. 

Being intentional about what impact we can have on our futures - as well as recognising what we need now - is important.

In smaller daily practices, I think our mental health can benefit from:

● Learning the importance of sitting in the discomfort of disagreements with others in the “how”, but recognising we can still be working towards a similar bigger picture with our “why”
● Understanding, learning to healthily process and familiarise ourselves with our bodies and uncomfortable emotions
● Being continually open to learning and maintaining humility, while keeping healthy boundaries as best as possible
● Understanding we are fallible and will make mistakes to learn and grow from
● Recognising perfection does not exist
● Giving ourselves slowness and reflection to counter the fast pace that we’re frequently bombarded with
● Reminding ourselves that we are in tumultuous and uncertain times
● Allowing space for fun, unproductivity, imperfection, silliness, and enjoying the company of those around us
● Have action plans to ask for help from trusted people and/or Aotearoa’s services if you need that

Dina Jezdic, independent curator and writer

The creative sector still has a long way to go when it comes to protecting the mental health of those involved.

Financial security and pay equity need to be top priorities. For artists and creatives, mental health is often closely linked to self-worth, which is, in turn, connected to the income generated through their work and opportunities. This is especially relevant in today’s world, where AI is rapidly reshaping creative industries. 

Without financial stability, many creatives find themselves battling stress, shame, and anxiety - often internalised and contributing to the stigma around mental health within these communities.

We need a shift in how we hold space for these conversations. 

It’s no longer enough to celebrate the highs of creative success—we must also actively build a nest to catch people during the lows. 

The creative community needs to signal that we have each other’s backs, especially when individuals are struggling. Talking openly about mental health and creating spaces where those conversations can happen without social/personal judgement is crucial.

It takes incredible effort to pull yourself out of a dark place mentally and physically. Building routines and spaces where this work can be sustained is essential. Consistency is key. Programmes like Toipoto once provided that kind of support for many, creating a space to heal, connect, and refocus. As a sector, we need more of that—a space where well-being is prioritised and the community uplifts each other through all stages of the creative journey.

Lucy Marinkovich - dancer, choreographer & Artistic Director of Borderline Arts Ensemble, Co-Chair Arts Wellington

It might seem reductive to conclude that the biggest lever creating challenges to the positive mental health of artists in Aotearoa is financial deprivation, but after years of conversations, video chats, and heartbreaking private messages with colleagues and arts friends - it’s the simplest conclusion I’ve come to. 

The intense degree of stress and anxiety the world felt when COVID upended people’s steady jobs and consistent paychecks is what most creatives live with fairly consistently. We navigate deserts of opportunity paucity between the sparkling oases of short-term funded (but long-term dreamt of and planned for) project work. 

Unfortunately, the reality is that project work still often requires huge amounts of unpaid labour and are physically and emotionally exhausting. The ecstatic high of being able to develop and share your craft, commune with audiences, and build relationships with colleagues all comes crashing down after the show ends and “post-show depression” comes knocking, waltzes in without taking their shoes off, and gets in under the duvet with you. 

Artists are the hardest-working people I know. They have multiple jobs to try to stay afloat, so this is not a matter of pulling the socks up a bit higher. Nor is it a matter of saying “toughen up” or “get a thick skin” to a community of workers whose ability to excel, innovate and push boundaries in their profession is directly proportional to their ability to be permeable, to feel deeply, to be engaged with the challenges of the world around and inside of them. 

Anna Rose Duckworth, filmmaker & director of Day One Hāpai te Haeata 

To state the obvious, a massive issue for the well-being of those in the creative sector is a lack of resources leading to being stretched over capacity, poor work/life balance and burnout. I don't think we should stop working on that issue - but it's well traversed. 

So instead I will say, with arts funding and initiatives being cut, that a priority in the creative sector needs to be finding and connecting with your creative community. Being surrounded by like-minded individuals who understand the struggle can lighten the load.

We may not be able to magic up more time or money but we can make this challenging time a little easier by being generous with each other - with our skills, with our knowledge and with our resources. 

If you have a space other people could use, let them know. If you have surplus supplies, make them available to each other. If you went to an excellent workshop, go have coffee with each other and share your favourite gems of knowledge. And don't be stingy with your likes and comments and shares - they are so valuable to artists and cost nothing to give! They can translate to future funding or unlocking new opportunities. 

But always, if you can pay an artist - DO!

If you or anyone you know needs support, here are some worthwhile organisations to contact:

Mental Health Foundation of New Zealand

1737, need to talk? Free call or text 1737 any time. 

Changing Minds | For better mental health in New Zealand

Lifeline - 0800 543 354 or text 4357