A new international collaboration between the Jameel Arts & Health Lab and the World Health Organization (WHO) is shedding light on how art can contribute to better health. The partners will soon launch a global Lancet series that documents the growing body of scientific evidence for the role of the arts in physical, mental, and social health.
The Lancet series shows, among other things, that art and culture can strengthen resilience, emotional engagement, and social belonging – factors that form part of WHO’s holistic concept of health.
“For too long, our systems have defined health almost exclusively in biomedical terms. Here, through diverse forms of evidence, we affirm that the arts are not peripheral to wellbeing but central to how we prevent disease, recover from illness, and sustain connection and dignity throughout life,” says Nisha Sajnani, founding co-director of the Jameel Arts & Health Lab, professor at NYU Steinhardt, and chair of the upcoming Lancet Global Series.
Artistic Contribution from NTNU
As part of the UN General Assembly’s High-Level Week (UNGA) in New York, the UNGA Healing Arts Week was organized to demonstrate how art and culture can promote global health. In this context, WHO and the Jameel Arts & Health Lab launched their first photo essay, The Lancet Global Series on the Health Benefits of the Arts.
At the center of this international collaboration was NTNU Professor Michael Duch. At the Guggenheim Museum, he performed Black earth/pink air, a work written for him by the American composer Michael Pisaro-Liu – a musical response to the wildfires in California.
“Black earth/pink air was composed for me by Michael Pisaro-Liu as part of the artistic research project Poetics of Space at NTNU. The project consists of a series of workshops where different spaces are explored through artistic processes. It was therefore a great honor to have the piece premiered at the Guggenheim Museum, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright himself in the 1950s,” says Michael Duch.
Art as a Health Resource
The Lancet series argues that art should not be understood as a supplement or luxury, but as an integral part of health care. The documentation is based on, among other sources, a WHO report from 2019 that reviewed more than 900 studies published between 2000 and 2019. The research includes everything from music and theater to dance and visual arts, and shows effects such as enhanced development in children and adolescents, improved clinical treatment outcomes, and support in rehabilitation and psychosocial recovery.
Despite this documented impact of art and culture on health, these factors are still not widely incorporated in preventive health work or everyday health services. A lack of awareness, political prioritization, and cuts in arts funding globally are highlighted as key barriers.
Delivering Recommendations for Health Policy
The Lancet series will present a research overview, a policy roadmap, and a photo essay showcasing art projects in various health contexts. The goal is to provide concrete recommendations for how art can be integrated into health systems worldwide.
The project is led by Dr. Nisha Sajnani (NYU Steinhardt) and Dr. Nils Fietje (WHO Europe), and includes researchers and artists from over 20 countries – including Norway.
The photo essay in the series was launched at the Guggenheim Museum on September 24, 2025, during UNGA Healing Arts Week in New York. The project is supported by Community Jameel.