Artsenta is a shared art studio for people accessing support for their mental health or addiction. We provide materials and equipment for a range of creative activites.

Artsenta was founded on the belief that creativity and artistic expression is an essential part of every person's health and well-being, and that those experiencing mental health challenges should be given the opportunity to realise their creative potential.

If you are interested in being creative, are 17 years old or over, and are seeing someone for a mental health or addiction issue, you are eligible to access Artsenta. There is no charge to come to Artsenta.

No. There is no formal referral process or form. You can just give us a call or come for a visit. You may find out about us from a health service but you can also self-refer. If you self-refer you will still need to be seeing a health professional for your mental health and wellbeing (e.g. mental health team, health service, GP, etc).

Most people begin by making a time to visit Artsenta. This is a chance for us to show you around our amazing space and introduce you to Artsenta and all the opportunuties to be creative. It's best to make a time or if you want to pop in, come between 9am and 11am.

Once you've had a look around staff will help you develop an Art Plan that will help guide your creative work at Artsenta. Our Creative Sessions are a great way to get started and try something out. See our timetable here. We cater for people who like to work in all sorts of ways and there is plenty of space and time to do your own thing.

Because Artsenta is a shared community space we have a set of guidelines that help us all maintain a safe and creative atmosphere. Please click here to read guidelines.

Once you join Artsenta, we will make an Art Plan which includes some personal information. This information is held in the strictest confidence. Your privacy and your rights under the Health Privacy Code are important to us. Our Privacy Statement here outlines what information we collect and why, how we store your information and your privacy rights.

Artsenta is a service of the Creative Arts Trust, a non profit organisation and registered charity. A board of trustees provides administrative and governance support to staff. The work of the Trust is primarily funded by Health NZ/Te Whatu Ora and the Ministry of Social Development along with the generous support of local and regional funders for specific projects.

See Our Team for staff and trustee information.

Artsenta was first established in 1986 making it one of the longest running creative spaces in the country.

 You can read more about our history here

Artsenta welcomes feedback and supports our artists to have a strong voice within our space. We encourage attending artists to raise any concerns with staff and they will support you to be heard.

You are welcome to attend Artist Meetings at the main table to hear about upcoming events, share what you are working on and join in discussions.
Rāapa/Wednesday, 3pm
Rārmere/Friday, 3pm

We also have an Artist Voice group that meets every month as well as a complaints process. You can talk to the Artist Voice members about your ideas, questions or concerns. There’s a photo of the group on the kitchen noticeboard.

The Suggestion Box is in the kitchen – suggestions are monitored by the Artist Voice group and shared with staff.

If you feel your complaint has not been addressed you can write a letter to the Chairperson of the Creative Arts Trust, or contact a Health & Disability Advocate (a free government service for all health service users).
Creative Arts Trust
PO Box 5986, DUNEDIN, 9054

Health & Disability Advocate
Ph: 0800 555 050
www.advocacy.org.nz

Please contact us if you need any support.