{"id":3739,"date":"2026-01-29T13:45:19","date_gmt":"2026-01-29T04:45:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/aatomo.jp\/?p=3739"},"modified":"2026-01-29T13:56:22","modified_gmt":"2026-01-29T04:56:22","slug":"uk_research","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/aatomo.jp\/en\/uk_research\/","title":{"rendered":"Energizing Body and Mind through Art: Insights from the UK\u2019s Creative Health Practices\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

1. MUMO \u2013 The Mobile Museum Visiting Parks Across the UK<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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MUMO \u2013 a mobile museum operated by Mus\u00e9e Mobile. So far, three units have been produced. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u2e3bCould you explain what MUMO is? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inaniwa<\/strong>\u3000MUMO (Mus\u00e9e\u00a0Mobile) is a mobile art gallery. It began in France in 2011 with the aim of providing opportunities for people who do not usually visit museums to\u00a0encounter\u00a0art, particularly modern and contemporary works. In collaboration with national museums, MUMO exhibits artworks inside a trailer and travels to different regions. Since 2023, with support from Art Explora, a similar initiative has started in the UK in collaboration with Tate. Our project team visited the exhibition held in Wolverhampton (West Midlands, Central England).\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When our project team stepped inside MUMO, what struck us most was the feeling\u2014\u201cIt really is a moving exhibition room!\u201d Normally, museum galleries are designed to maintain stable temperature and humidity and to minimize vibrations. Old oil paintings, for instance, are fragile and easily affected by environmental changes, which makes them difficult to manage. Because of this, I expected the trailer would mainly house sculptures or works that could withstand different environments or be reproduced if necessary. To our surprise, however, it displayed a well-balanced selection of authentic museum pieces, including oil paintings over a hundred years old. This was possible because the trailer was equipped with systems to control temperature, humidity, and vibration just like a conventional museum. While mobile museums exist around the world, I feel very few can present collection works with such authenticity and care as MUMO does. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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An exhibition titled \u201cSoup, Socks & Spiders!\u201d held in collaboration with Tate Liverpool from February to May 2024. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Kiriyama<\/strong>\u3000I had imagined something much simpler, but I was amazed to find it equipped to the same standard as a museum. And because it\u00a0was located in\u00a0a park, it made the experience feel casual and easy to drop in. I saw a child who had come to play football in the park step inside, still holding the ball. He said it was his first time viewing artworks in a museum, and the facilitator guided him skillfully, tailoring the conversation to his interests. I thought that must have been a wonderful first museum experience for him.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inaniwa<\/strong>\u3000MUMO is set to park within a 20-minute walk from a local school, so on weekdays pupils can easily come on foot as part of their classes. Since the trailer is only about 30 square meters, the entire class\u00a0can\u2019t\u00a0go in at once. Instead, about ten students\u2014roughly half\u00a0the class\u2014first go inside to view and discuss the artworks, while the others take part in a printmaking workshop at a nearby community space, creating works related to the exhibition theme. When their time is up, they switch.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The area outside the trailer is equipped with tables and chairs, creating a space for workshops and for displaying completed artworks. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Kiriyama<\/strong>\u3000In Japan, the unequal gap in access to cultural activities between urban and rural areas has become\u00a0a serious issue, and touring exhibitions to regional cities are actively promoted to help bridge that gap. What I found unique about MUMO is their choice of parks as destinations. A temporary museum appears in places where local people usually picnic or exercise, blending in naturally and being warmly embraced by the community. I had never seen anything like it before.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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A group viewing the artworks with a facilitator. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Inaniwa<\/strong>\u3000According to research, people who do not visit museums often have\u00a0a very limited\u00a0range of daily activities\u2014usually no further than about a 10-minute bike ride from home. If information about an exhibition\u00a0doesn\u2019t\u00a0reach into\u00a0that area, they simply\u00a0won\u2019t\u00a0come. Looking at things by city or municipality is still too broad;\u00a0what\u2019s\u00a0really needed is a\u00a0hyper-local<\/em>\u00a0approach to communities.\u00a0That\u2019s\u00a0why I think traveling to parks in different regions is\u00a0a really effective\u00a0approach.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Viewing the artworks in a small group while engaging in conversation. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u2e3bIf a mobile museum were to be created in Japan, what would need to be considered? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inaniwa<\/strong>\u3000In Japan, there are\u00a0a number of\u00a0hurdles to\u00a0exhibiting\u00a0museum collections outside the museum itself. Even before tackling the technical challenges of ensuring proper conditions such as temperature and humidity control, there is a more fundamental barrier: many museums still lack awareness of the need to create access for diverse audiences. I imagine there may be\u00a0a similar situation\u00a0in the UK. In Japan, projects that tour museum collections to local facilities have been carried out since the postwar years, but only a few have updated their significance or style to reflect contemporary times. By bringing in new perspectives such as health and care, these projects could reconsider who the collections should reach and\u00a0how, and\u00a0refine their approaches to better fit today\u2019s society. If a mobile museum were to be introduced in Japan, I hope it would be designed with content that reaches diverse audiences\u2014taking into account\u00a0disparities in opportunities for cultural participation and incorporating perspectives of health and wellbeing.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Museum in a Box – Turning Museum Collection Information into Data to be Taken Outside the Museum <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u2e3bCould you tell us about \u201cMuseum in a Box\u201d? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inaniwa<\/strong>\u3000Museum in a Box is a tool that allows museum collection information to be taken beyond the walls of the museum. NFC tags (embedded with IC chips using near-field communication technology) are placed in cards or three-dimensional objects, and when these are held up to the Museum in a Box, the box plays audio, much like a radio. For example, if you place a small replica sculpture on the box, it plays information about the piece; if you place a local historical object on it, you might hear sounds related to that material. Museums in different regions load their collections into the system so the information can be taken outside the museum.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0lent out to schools and many other facilities, but it\u00a0seems to be\u00a0especially popular with care homes. Its playful retro-radio design is also part of the appeal.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kiriyama<\/strong>\u3000The idea that just placing an object on the box makes a sound is simple yet fun, and\u00a0I think it\u00a0really works as a spark for communication.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inaniwa<\/strong>\u3000In one exhibition organized by the British Library, local libraries and artists worked together to record oral histories from community residents into the Museum in a Box. Collaborating with artists in this way to bring a local focus felt\u00a0very close\u00a0to the idea of Cultural Prescribing\u2014using art and culture to help address unwanted loneliness and social isolation.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u2e3b<\/span>If a tool like Museum in a Box were to be introduced in Japan, what might it look like? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kiriyama<\/strong>\u3000Museum in a Box started about ten years ago, so the focus back then was on making it work as a standalone tool. Today,\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0normal to\u00a0be connected\u00a0to networks and access all kinds of resources, and even to interact with AI speakers. If we were to develop something from 2025 onwards, it might be good to build in some of those new possibilities.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, if you placed a photo of an artwork on Museum in a Box, the AI could ask, \u201cWhat do you think about this?\u201d and a conversation would begin. If you kept repeating the process, the AI could start to build up experience much like an art communicator, and say things like, \u201cPeople in other places reacted this way,\u201d or \u201cSome viewers saw it like this.\u201d That would be really exciting. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Inaniwa<\/strong>\u3000Experiencing art on your own and experiencing it while talking with someone are completely different. I remember when you once\u00a0observed\u00a0how art communicators\u00a0facilitate\u00a0viewing, you said that today\u2019s AI still\u00a0can\u2019t\u00a0replicate that kind of facilitation. What struck me is that there\u2019s still\u00a0very little\u00a0research into the\u00a0skills of facilitators\u2014how they listen, build on dialogue, and weave conversations together. On the surface, a question asked by AI and a question asked by a human art communicator may seem similar, but in fact they are quite different.\u00a0I\u2019m\u00a0very interested\u00a0in exploring what exactly makes that difference.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The same applies to Museum in a Box. The idea of placing something on a device and having it play a sound isn\u2019t cutting-edge technology\u2014it\u2019s actually very simple. But when it\u2019s right in front of you, you feel like trying it, and people gather around. Why is that? What is it that people find engaging? What kind of touchpoints make them feel it as their own experience? I\u2019d like to keep exploring those questions and, based on that thinking, imagine new ways the idea might evolve. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. \u201cThe Platt Hall Inbetween\u201d \u2013 A Social Prescribing Project at a Branch of Manchester Art Gallery <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

\u2e3b<\/span>Could you tell us about the \u201cPlatt Hall Inbetween\u201d project in Manchester? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inaniwa<\/strong>\u3000To give some background, Manchester is a city that has been particularly committed to creative health\u2014creative approaches and activities that support people\u2019s health and wellbeing. The turning point came in 2010, when the World Health Organization (WHO) launched an international network of municipalities working to become Age-friendly Cities. Manchester was one of the first to step forward, with the belief that improving access to culture and the arts can not only enrich lives but also help address health inequalities. Guided by this conviction, the city has developed internationally pioneering initiatives in this field. The local authority, universities, art galleries, and other public-sector bodies have joined forces to create a collaborative platform, which in some ways resembles our own ART-based Platform for Co-creation as a research and development initiative linking government, academia, and culture.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Among the many examples we learned about, the initiative that I found most valuable from the perspective of cultural prescribing was the work being carried out at Platt Hall, a branch of Manchester Art Gallery. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Platt Hall, situated in Platt Fields Park, became a branch of Manchester Art Gallery in 1926. In 1947, it opened as the world\u2019s first museum dedicated to fashion and costume, before closing in 2017. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Kiriyama<\/strong>\u3000Platt Hall was originally a costume museum with\u00a0almost a\u00a0century of history, but after a combination of factors it was closed and has now been transformed into a hub for cultural prescribing activities. I was struck by the boldness of turning a closed museum into a community hub for\u00a0local residents.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inaniwa<\/strong>\u3000In Manchester, general practitioners (GPs)\u2014family doctors who provide comprehensive care for\u00a0local residents\u2014can issue not only medical prescriptions but also social prescriptions. With these prescriptions, patients consult with health and wellbeing coaches to find ways of engaging with local people and places, and Platt Hall is one of the destinations they can be referred to.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, patients at risk of developing diabetes may be encouraged to join a program where they walk through the park, view Platt Hall\u2019s collections, and take part in conversations. The program also includes time for doctors to share information related to health and medical care, but it always makes sure to provide social opportunities that foster connections with the community. This is crucial, because statistics clearly show that unwanted loneliness and isolation can accelerate chronic conditions such as diabetes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Ruth Edson (left), Senior Learning Manager at Manchester Art Gallery, explaining Platt Hall\u2019s connection with the local community, with Liz Mitchell (right), who leads Platt Hall. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Inaniwa<\/strong>\u3000At Platt Hall, local volunteers take care of the gardening, and patients sometimes join them. Their activities are wide-ranging\u2014for example, creating spaces where parents and children without a place in the community can come and play, or offering programs for immigrant families. An important feature is that professionals from the welfare and health sectors, such as nurses, also take\u00a0part.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Platt Hall Field, a community market garden near Platt Hall. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u2e3b<\/span>Do you think a similar kind of initiative could work in Japan? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inaniwa<\/strong>\u3000Japan\u2019s healthcare system is different, so it cannot be replicated in\u00a0exactly the same\u00a0way, nor is Japan aiming to\u00a0establish\u00a0the same structure. In the UK, with an aging society and rising social welfare costs, they are exploring how best to\u00a0allocate\u00a0limited social resources, and social prescribing is one such approach currently being tested. Healthcare in the UK is built around primary care\u2014a comprehensive approach that begins with the patient\u2019s wishes and looks at both body and mind\u2014together with team-based healthcare. There seems to be a shared recognition that without bringing together\u00a0expertise\u00a0and knowledge from a range of fields and working as a team, it will not be possible to overcome the challenges they currently face.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inaniwa<\/strong>\u3000What Japan can learn from the UK is the way different sectors are increasingly collaborating in the field of health and wellbeing while respecting\u00a0each individual\u2019s\u00a0own choices and sense of agency. In Japan, two new laws enacted this year\u2014the Basic Act on Dementia to Promote an Inclusive Society and the Act on the Advancement of Measures to\u00a0Address Loneliness and Isolation\u2014make clear the importance of promoting measures not only within the departments directly concerned but across\u00a0society as a whole. It seems clear that these developments have\u00a0drawn on\u00a0examples from the UK, which has been a leader in this field.\u00a0I think we\u00a0are now entering a time when we need to start thinking in concrete terms about how museums can play a role within this framework.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Advancing Creative Health in Japan While Learning from Global Practices <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

\u2e3b<\/span>Finally, could you share your impressions and reflections from this research visit? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kiriyama<\/strong>\u3000What I found interesting in Manchester was that it was not the government taking the\u00a0central role, but rather the university and university museums leading the way. They brought together experts from a wide range of fields, including healthcare and art, under the banner of \u201cCreative Manchester,\u201d and those experts\u00a0participated\u00a0in\u00a0many different ways. I felt there was\u00a0a strong sense\u00a0of potential for the framework to broaden and evolve further.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The various examples we observed, such as gardening therapy, could certainly be developed as forms of cultural prescribing within our ART-based Platform for Co-creation. On the other hand, when it comes to building the underlying systems, I felt it would take time, as this inevitably involves the health insurance framework and medical systems. In Japan, the approach being advanced by Dr. Nishi Tomohiro\u2014integrating cultural elements into community-based initiatives<\/a>\u2014may be one effective model. Personally, I would like to see technology incorporated into this, though not in a way that makes it the main focus. Even modest uses of technology could add an element of fun and visibility, or provide the infrastructure to support such activities. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inaniwa<\/strong>\u3000In the UK, I felt that the idea of museums contributing to wellbeing has become quite well established, with a wide range of activities already in place. The notion that the arts and cultural activities can connect to wellbeing and care has always been embedded in their very essence, so it can be seen as a natural extension of their role. In Japan, however, such initiatives are still relatively\u00a0few in number.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, the COVID-19 pandemic brought the issue of unwanted loneliness and isolation into sharp focus, and even in Japan there is now increasing discussion about what art and culture can do to address this. In Asia, ideas such as “ishoku dogen”<\/em>\u2014the belief that medicine and diet share the same origin\u2014reflect an inherently holistic way of thinking about health. Building on these distinctly Asian perspectives, we can explore how art and cultural activities can contribute to wellbeing, and eventually share such examples both within Japan and internationally. Through the key concept of cultural prescribing promoted by our ART-based Platform for Co-creation, I hope we can continue to shape and explore a uniquely Japanese approach to creative health. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Related articles on creative health:\u3000
https:\/\/aatomo.jp\/en\/artistic-activities-health-wellbeing\/\u00a0<\/a>

Related articles on Platt Hall:
https:\/\/aatomo.jp\/en\/platt-hall-inbetween\/\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In recent years, research has increasingly shown that opportunities for creative experiences can affect health. We visited the UK, one of the leading countries in the field of \u201ccreative health,\u201d which promotes health and wellbeing through cultural activities. <\/p>\n

In May 2024, a project team from Tokyo University of the Arts and the National Center for Art Research conducting research on cultural prescribing traveled to the UK to study advanced initiatives in creative health (creative activities that contribute to health and wellbeing). <\/p>\n

In this article, we introduce MUMO, a mobile museum that uses collections to reduce disparities in access to culture and education; Museum in a Box, which condenses collection data into a small box; and Platt Hall Inbetween, a project of Manchester Art Gallery that collaborates with local communities and the healthcare sector. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_locale":"en_US","_original_post":"https:\/\/aatomo.jp\/?p=3739","footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[21,24,27,32,41],"post_label":[],"class_list":["post-3739","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-cultural-prescribing-today","tag-wellbeing","tag-technology","tag-museum","tag-community-collaboration","tag-overseas","en-US"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/aatomo.jp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3739","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/aatomo.jp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/aatomo.jp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aatomo.jp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aatomo.jp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3739"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/aatomo.jp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3739\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3789,"href":"https:\/\/aatomo.jp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3739\/revisions\/3789"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/aatomo.jp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3739"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aatomo.jp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3739"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aatomo.jp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3739"},{"taxonomy":"post_label","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aatomo.jp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_label?post=3739"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}