Max Wagner sees himself as a sensitive person. A not unnoticeable confession for the managing director of one of the largest cultural centers in Germany, the Gasteig. Every day he does yoga and meditates. In addition, the trained singer still makes music regularly. “If I hadn’t had those things, I probably wouldn’t have lasted as long as I did,” he says. By that he means the stress that comes with his work. And that should not be insignificant, since the general renovation of the Gasteig that Wagner initiated is a constant problem child and now supposedly the reason for his departure in winter.
Wagner’s latest creation, the “Mental Health Arts Festival”, is also about stress in a specific sense. The one-day event next Saturday, July 8th, in the interim building HP8 is dedicated to the intersection of art and mental health. On the one hand, art is supposed to help against mental illness. On the other hand, artists are considered to be particularly at risk when it comes to mental health.
But, according to Wagner, there is still a stigma around the topic – families don’t talk about it, employers have too little sensitivity to it. The festival, sponsored by the Beisheim Foundation, aims to change that. From 12.30 p.m. to 9.30 p.m. there will be workshops, panels, concerts, readings and meditation sessions spread over the various rooms of the HP8 – all free of charge.
In order to make the event easily accessible, Wagner and his team deliberately chose a two-track approach: playful experimentation on the one hand, information and science on the other. In a comic workshop with the artist Dominik Wieland, who has experienced depression, participants can test the effect of drawing on their well-being. The same applies to the “Dance as a Resource” course or the singing workshop on the “Ur-Instrument voice” with the psychologist and voice teacher Melissa Salinas Rannenberg.
Meanwhile, relevant experts discuss in public discussions – such as Anne Löhr, a therapist specializing in the music industry, and Sebastian Scholz, professor for musicians’ health, in the panel “Performance Pressure & Burnout”. It’s about performance stress, bad pay and “crusty structures” in the music world. Also present is pop star Antje Schomaker, critic of the “soulless German hit machine”.
Schomaker is not the only star of the evening: Oscar winner Caroline Link talks about the portrayal of mental disorders in films and series. And the poetry slammers Jule Weber and Yannik Sellmann can be seen live at the festival opening at 12.30 p.m. Schomaker also gives a concert in the evening – at 8 p.m. in the Isarphilharmonie. Free tickets can be booked at www.muenchenticket.de.
The event on Saturday serves as a pilot project. If things go well, it should become a regular thing. “There is already an appointment for next year,” says Wagner.
“Mental Health Arts Festival”, Saturday, July 8th, Gasteig HP8, information at www.gasteig.de