JUNO WELA 
 ABOUT
A QUESTION OF PERSPECTIVE

An Interactive Art Exhibition That Communicates in Brushstrokes



Video from the exhibition A Question of Perspective,
pōk Collective & Juno Wela, 
Lokremise St. Gallen, 
May 2025.
The second edition of an interactive art therapy exhibition series, at the intersection of clinical psychiatry and contemporary art practice. 



ART THERAPY EXHIBITION 
250+ VISITORS
49 ARTWORKS BY 8 ATELIERS

MY ROLE
Co-founder of the concept, Production, Curation & Event Host 

LOCATION
17.5.2025, Lokremise St. Gallen, Switzerland





INTERACTIVE ARTWORKS?

“A Question of Perspective” invited visitors to reflect on their relationship to mental health. With brushes on their hands, visitors were guided to see, feel, and think their way through a multisensory exhibition space, which included dance performances and panel discussions. 

This was the second edition, initiated, conceptualized, and produced by  & Juno Wela.


RESEARCH

Research began with the concept of the Living Museum, a term initially coined in New York by the psychologist Janos Marton and then brought to psychiatries of Switzerland. Besides literature about trauma-informed art practices, the basis of preparation and research was a series of inverviews with patients, artists, and people working at the Living Museum Wil. Janos Marton's philosophy and Fernand Deligny's theories of non-verbal pedagogy served as the guiding principles in approaching design choices and communication. 
PROGRAM

“Learn about art therapy with performances, panels, and pigments on your hands” was the guiding theme. The program was aimed to feel intuitive and inclusive. All program points were experience oriented, inviting visitors to engage with art therapy.

  1. Dance Performance (visual)
    by Les Papillons

  2. Painting Canvases (tangible) 
    Spills technique by Living Museum Collective pōk
    Visitors were given instructions and materials to reveal the artworks on canvas.

  3. Panel Discussion (intellectual) 
    “Care & Creativity” with Dr. phil. Sandra Winiger,     Juliane Pfeiffer, Nicola Müller, and Juno Wela.
OUTCOME

In striking a balance between using accessible language and respecting the complex nature of mental health discourse, we developed an interactive framework helping visitors to experience art rather than to observe it.

250+ visitors
Displayed 49 artworks by the international Living Museum Society encompassing more than a dozen ateliers across eight different countries
Successful implementation of an interactive framework at the event
Built analog and digital infrastructures for future editions.











CONCEPT & STRATEGY




THE EXHIBITION SPACE AS A PLAYGROUND

In curating this event, we aimed to create a playground rather than a museum space. As a result, artworks were constructed to stand on the floor as cubes which could be approached from four sides. Other canvases were lying flat on the floor (in order to be accessible to children) and some cubes were designed for visitors to walk through them. Guests were given brushes and sponges to paint on the seemingly empty canvases and reveal hidden motifs on them. This set-up helped to create proximity to the artworks as well as blurring traditional roles of artists and visitors.




COMMUNITY FOCUSED MEDIA STRATEGY

The main audience for this event was the local population, people with lived experiences of mental illness, as well as relatives of artists from pōk collective. Therefore, the media strategy for advertising this event was designed for three platforms: the international Living Museum community, the local arts and culture scene of St. Gallen, and the community for mental health activism in Switzerland.

As a result, the media strategy was a mix of online and offline marketing, using email newsletters, Instagram, posters, flyers, and cultural event calendars. In addition, we had an open call for artists from the international Living Museum community to participate with their artworks. We successfully exceeded our aim to reach 150 visitors and ended up welcoming over 250 guests from Switzerland, Germany, Belgium and even Brazil.



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