Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival
The Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival (SMHAF) is back from 20th October to 9th November 2025, exploring the theme of Comfort & Disturb.
About Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival
| 20th Oct 2025 to 9th Nov 2025 | |
| See event website for details | |
| Nationwide | |
| See event website for details | |
| Event organiser/part of Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival | |
| Visit the event website here | |
| Facebook information can be found here | |
| Follow mhfestival on Instagram |
The Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival returns from 20 October to 9 November 2025 with one of its most ambitious and far-reaching programmes yet, with hundreds of events all across Scotland inspired by the theme Comfort & Disturb.
Explore the full line-up now, which includes Scottish dates for acclaimed show Batshit, the return of the International Film Awards and Out of Sight, Out of Mind, a showcase of new mental health themed theatre in Glasgow, Are You Sitting Comfortably?, and much more!
Where possible we will update our listings to notify of cancelled, postponed and rescheduled events, however we STRONGLY ADVISE that you check with the venue/organiser in the first instance for updates.
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Other Events at Various Venues or Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival
Jessica Ramm: Hard Edges Soft Layers
Hard Edges Soft Layers is an exhibition by Jessica Ramm, artist and writer based in Glasgow, exploring vulnerability within motherhood.
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ir/regular
Join the team at Project Ability for their next exhibition 'ir/regular featuring work from neurodivergent artist Grant Glennie.
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Brave Spaces
An exhibition of original screenprints created by participants working with Bazooka Arts and Glasgow Print Studio, in response to the theme Brave Spaces.
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Time and Space: Comfort in Chaos
Time and Space presents a multi-media exhibition exploring Comfort & Disturb through the experiences of people who hear voices and/or self-harm.
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Artspace: Creative Connections in Callander - Exhibition
This exhibition features work produced by participants in six weeks of workshops led by a professional artist, responding to SMHAF’s 2025 theme, Comfort & Disturb.
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Do Not Disturb!
Do Not Disturb! is a series of staged photographs created to tell the stories of those who have been, or still are, affected by poor mental health.
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Young At Heart
These weekly one-hour workshops invite participants to explore movement and learn new dance moves in a fun, relaxed and social environment.
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Neuro Art 2025: Art Exhibition
Create Paisley and Renfrewshire HSCP invite neurodivergent artists in Renfrewshire to take part in a vibrant art exhibition celebrating diverse perspectives.
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Creative Comfort Zones: Brave Spaces and the Edges of Ease
Bazooka Arts hosts a series of participatory workshops, performances and an exhibition, inviting participants to explore their comfort zones through therapeutic arts.
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I Used to Be…
Textiles exhibition by Eilidh Manson featuring items that we expect to bring comfort, but, on closer inspection, are not what we expect them to be.
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Gartnavel Royal Summer House Residency
Project Ability artists and inpatients from Gartnavel Royal Hospital reflect on ideas of comfort and disturbance in nature, with visits to the Gartnavel Summer House and gardens.
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Paint With Wool
Needle felting invites focus and reflection, this four-week course offers you the chance to discover how learning to 'paint with wool' can help you nurture your mental wellbeing.
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Out of Sight Out of Mind Exhibition
The biggest mental health art exhibition in Scotland in it's 13th year will present artworks made by 400 people.
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Are You Sitting Comfortably?
Are You Sitting Comfortably? is a one-day programme showcasing new mental health themed theatre, plus creative conversations, installations and more.
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Chance2Change: Health n Equality
Celebrate creativity and community with Chance2Change, as we present spoken word films, powerful art, and excerpts from our collaborative novel.
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Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Stress But Were Too Afraid to Ask
Therapeutic comedy with Raymond Mearns and special guests exploring the 14 signs of stress, what it looks like, and how to manage it.
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Get Your Groove On with The Buddy Beat
Feel good through rhythm! Join our free drumming taster sessions - easy, uplifting, and great for wellbeing. Includes tea, coffee, and biscuits.
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Participatory Arts & Mental Health Symposium
Explore the challenges, and rewards, involved in creating participatory arts projects that focus on mental health in this one day gathering.
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Love and Madness
Fingerprint Editions brings Mistress Pieces to life with an immersive art installation at the Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival Showcase, taking place on Friday 24th October at Civic House.
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SMHAF x A Kick Up the Arts
Join BBC Broadcaster and A Kick Up The Arts host Nicola Meighan as she explores creativity and mental health with Emma Pollock, Jo Mango and Amy Duncan.
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Geostories
Discover how geo-stories can be a powerful tool for voicing lived experiences of mental ill-health and experiment with writing your own.
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Seanachaidh - A Storytelling Ceilidh
A traditional ceilidh offering space for storytelling, connection, and emotional expression, exploring Comfort & Disturb through shared experience and maybe a little dancing.
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Mad Culture
Join directors Julia Macintosh and Azra Khan at McDonald Road Library on 25th October as they introduce their work in the context of this year's festival theme.
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Voices: A Neurodivergent Open Mic
Join us at Slow Progress Coffee and Records for a laid-back open mic event for young people with neurodivergence to share songs, poetry and stories, and meet like-minded people.
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Drawn Together
A powerful exhibition of visual art by local people with lived experience of homelessness, sharing stories often overlooked.
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Changing the Narrative
Come along to Filmhouse on 26th October and watch short films created by people from a global majority background, people with experience of migration, and young parents.
READ MOREComfort & Disturb Songwriting and Film Project Showcase
This Comfort and Disturb project included songwriting and music performance workshops. The music was then recorded and films were made to accompany them by participants.
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Music in The Museum: Between the Notes with Karen MacIver
'Between the Notes' is a gentle invitation to pause, listen, experience and reflect. This special event marks the launch of a new artist-designed public piano for North Lanarkshire.
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Creating Space
Creating Space is a creative workshop supporting wellbeing, open to Health All Round participants in Edinburgh.
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Extreme Ancestry
Martin Stepek shares powerful stories from his Polish and Irish heritage, including readings from his memoir about his father's astonishing and tragic journey to Scotland.
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Between Worlds and Memories - Birth, Death, and Resurrection by Tigo Ayres
Between Worlds and Memories: Birth, Death, and Resurrection is an immersive exhibition-performance by Brazilian-British artist, performer, and psychologist Tigo Ayres.
READ MORENever Give Up
Headliner JustKate shares her journey of survival and transformation, shaped by her experiences with the Scottish care system, through spoken word, piano, and soulful singing.
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The Power of Place
Join artist Ian Macintosh as he delves into place as a compelling subject, exploring how our surroundings have the power to comfort or disturb.
READ MOREThe Friendship Bench Documentary
Documentary screening about The Friendship Bench, an initiative to address Zimbabwe's growing mental health crisis, hosted by University of Glasgow's School of Health & Wellbeing.
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Liminal Exhibition
Liminal is a collaborative exhibition developed by young people working with the Mental Health Foundation, Edinburgh Children’s Hospital Charity and artist Louise Fraser!
READ MOREThe Empty Chair
A psychodrama session exploring the emotional experience of infant feeding, led by psychodrama psychotherapist Leila Frondigoun as part of the Feed project.
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Mortality & Making: Crafting Conversations About Death
Join us for a taboo-breaking, liberating workshop that explores death through storytelling, coffin crafting, and open conversation.
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Moving Minds
Join us for an uplifting day of community, creativity, and celebration as Moving Minds returns to Civic House as part of Glasgow 850!
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Silver Swans Celebration
Join us for a day of movement, music and creativity with RAD and Dance Base, designed for those aged 55 and over!
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All Write Now
Have you ever wanted to try creative writing to support your health and wellbeing? Then come along to All Write Now, a relaxed writing group run by Health All Round.
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Embodied M*ther
Join artists Rebecca Livesey-Wright (they/she) and Indra Wilson (they/them) for a relaxed clay workshop and open conversation on experiences of pregnancy and m*therhood.
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Out of the Shadows
Out of the Shadows is an exhibition of paintings by young people who attend The Aims Project, reflecting their personal journeys from high school into adulthood.
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Disturbing the Picture
Explore how photography can help reframe mental health, wellbeing and life stories in this hands-on creative workshop.
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OOSOOM Uncovered
OOSOOM Uncovered is a unique opportunity to engage with the Out of Sight Out of Mind exhibition’s Planning Group and volunteers. Everyone is welcome to join!
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Nurture & Empower
Explore how art can comfort people with lived experience of social isolation and Alcohol Related Brain Damage (ARBD) in this hands-on event.
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Mind of Man
Inspired by the experiences of Scottish prisoners and the author's own journey with undiagnosed ADHD and autism, this is a powerful play about the struggle to claim your place in the world.
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Speakin’ Oor Mind
Join See Me for a relaxed evening of spoken word performances exploring the theme of Comfort & Disturb, followed by an open mic session in a warm and supportive environment.
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International Film Awards
Selected from over 450 submissions, we will be celebrating the stunning winning films that confront and reflect on mental health at our much-loved annual awards ceremony.
READ MOREYoung Lives and Perceptions of Wellbeing
An exhibition featuring artworks by children from local schools and the family support project Families Here and Now, reflecting their views on wellbeing.
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Art is to Console
Help create a collaborative collage inspired by Van Gogh's A Starry Night, reflecting on comfort, disturbance and our mental health journeys.
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Home Comforts
Home Comforts invites us to look closer at the spaces we inhabit and inherit, questioning what they give us, what they take from us - and how they shape who we become.
READ MOREThere’s Comfort in Community
This short film programme explores human connection and the profound comfort found in community.
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Exhibiting Ellamatta
An exploratory exhibition of work by Janella Lewis (1943–2024), exploring represents her multiple lived worlds of mental ill-health.
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Unique Perspectives
From snow-peaked mountains to surreal dreamscapes, this programme brings together a bold selection of shorts that explore identity, and offer insight into lives often left at the margins.
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DIAGNONSENSE
For over 15 years, director Ane-Martha Tamnes Hansgård was labelled with several serious psychiatric diagnoses. DIAGNONSENSE is a unique cinematic universe based on her experiences.
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Film in Mind
Aimed at filmmakers who have been involved in making work exploring mental health, this small group session is led by Film in Mind founder and psychotherapist Rebecca Day.
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Story Cafe: Community Wellbeing
Join our Story Cafe in Glasgow's southside to listen and share stories, exploring Comfort & Disturb from a creative and reflective perspective.
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Radical Rhymes: Powerful Poems Through the Ages
Martin Stepek shares a powerful talk with poetry readings, demonstrating how poetry has always offered comfort in suffering.
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Fading Frames
Join us for the premiere of a new short film about the complexities of love, loss and letting go, commissioned by NHS Lanarkshire's SMHAF programme.
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See Me More Clearly, Hear Me More Clearly
An exhibition exploring Comfort & Disturb through digital photography, sculpture, and climate-themed artworks made from found materials.
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Grey Milk & Lost Kin
In Grey Milk & Lost Kin, artist filmmaker Wilma Stone crafts an imaginary world of her hidden ancestral lineage, from the Gypsy/Traveller communities of Scotland.
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Chasing The Light
An idealistic dream becomes a world-renowned centre of Tibetan Buddhist practice on an Irish peninsula in Chasing the Light, a hopeful and inspiring feature documentary from director, Maurice O'Brien.
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Disturbances
This collection of short films blends animation and drama, reframing a series of distinctive interruptions to everyday lives as powerful opportunities for reflection and exploration.
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Psychogeographies
Taking you on a journey through physical and imagined geographies, these diverse short films reveal complex landscapes shaped by trauma, grief and conflict.
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Myth and the Self: Creative Explorations of Gold and Shadow
Two creative, experiential dramatherapy-based workshops as part of Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival 2025. Discover the power of myth!
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Palestine Comedy Club
Following six Palestinian comedians coming from Haifa, Ramallah, Jenin, Hebron,and the Golan Heights who come together to form the first Palestinian Comedy Club.
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Spoken Word Supper Club
A vibrant evening of spoken word fuelled by food and fierce new writing by young people living in West Lothian.
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ReMode presents: The Repair Retreat
Slow down and stitch new life into your clothes at ReMode's Repair Retreat. Join us for a mindful, hands-on session of creative mending and personal restoration
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Easy Sundays: The TAM Sessions
The TAM Sessions is an open and informal trad session, but with the lovely additional invitation to bring your sewing, knitting, crochet, or any other crafting project that you enjoy.
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