Art show aims to ‘#FightTheStigma’
Local musician, fellow ‘The Voice’ contestants will perform in effort to highlight mental health issues
Mental health advocacy is a prominent topic in modern culture, and it’s coming to Santa Clarita in a fun, artistic way.
Local musician Karli Webster is organizing the “#FightTheStigma” art show June 8. The event will feature live performances by Webster and other musicians, including fellow “The Voice” stars Brooke Simpson and Britton Buchanan, art presentations, food and interactive activities centered around destigmatizing mental health, opening up healthy channels of communication and highlighting local resources.
“Mental health is something that has been stigmatized for so long and is a taboo topic, and for a community to grow mental health is something that needs to be talked about and that people need to feel free to talk about,” Webster said. “For many of the people I know, art is a form of self-expression. I want to celebrate art and how that has helped with the destigmatization of mental health.”
Webster was encouraged to organize “#FightTheStigma” after she spoke to children about anxiety at the “No Stigmas Allowed” event in Canyon Country last year. The event received a grant from the California Mental Health Services Authority after Webster was encouraged to apply for the grant by one of the event’s organizers, which she received, and with just about a month to plan, dove into creating the event.
“I spoke to kids about my experience with anxiety and panic disorder, and a lot of them had felt anxiety before but didn’t know that it had another name, and that just impacted me so deeply,” Webster said. “I’ve never organized an event before, especially not to this capacity, but it’s become my life’s purpose to focus on the mental health community, and this is nothing short of an incredible honor. Thankfully, I have a lot of friends who are just as passionate about mental health as I am and have no problem staying up with me to plan this event.”
Though much of the night’s entertainment and artwork will be provided by Webster’s network of artist friends, she also wants to incorporate as many art submissions as she can.
“I’m having people submit visual art, poetry and all sorts of stuff that isn’t just art, and I want to showcase as many pieces as I can,” she said. “I want to showcase people’s experiences in the mental health community and what they’re doing to get better, so they know that they’re not alone.”
If the event is successful, Webster wants to grow the event to an annual or even semiannual event and possibly expand outward and incorporate work from the Los Angeles artistic community.
“Success in this event would be just one person showing up and feeling understood and welcomed into a community of empathetic people,” she said. “That’s a pure success, and if more than one person gets that and has the tools to talk about mental health challenges, that’s a win.”
“#FightTheStigma” will take place at the Sierra Hills Pool Club at 28616 Kenroy Ave. on June 8 from 7 to 10 p.m. Free tickets can be reserved at eventbrite.com/e/fightthestigmatickets-61716305130. Webster will accept art submissions at info@karliwebstermusic.com until May 25.
“Success (is) just one person showing up and feeling understood.” Karli Webster