Mens Artium

Mens Artium is a community-based and non-profit project that was founded by Christine Nikander in the summer of 2022. The organization is active at the nexus of human rights, restorative justice, and the arts.

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The idea for Mens Artium was born after Christine attended a course on human-centered design and social innovation at the Columbia Entrepreneurship Design Studio in New York. Christine studied human rights and restorative justice in university, and she has been making art for as long as she can remember. Mens Artium is the product of experiencing how art can be used to deal with both first- and second-hand trauma.

 

Mens Artium is inspired by the work of human rights defenders, humanitarians, creators, and artists around the world. The aim of Mens Artium is to create safe spaces to help survivors of human rights violations process the long-term effects of trauma. To achieve this, Mens Artium offers free art workshops and mentoring to survivors.

 

The name “Mens Artium” comes from Latin and loosely translated refers to the intention or reason of the arts.