A Vancouver artist is tackling the secondary pandemic accompanying the coronavirus (COVID-19), that of mental health deterioration due to isolation, loneliness and lack of physical touch.
Joshua Oliver, a.k.a. Red Jay, is a self-described “video artivist” whose latest work is called the "Human Weighted Blanket." So far we only have the teaser trailer but it shows three Canadians, including a transgender musician, a Syrian refugee, and a young student testing out what they believe is a regular weighted blanket. However, it is teasingly revealed that the weighted blanket in question was actually made up of platonic human touch therapists.
The therapists range from professional somatic bodyworkers, massage therapists and professional cuddlers. The “blanket’s” testers were chosen based on how the pandemic has negatively affected their mental health in some way. The musician for instance is dealing with the suicide of their first love and the student is having difficulty coping with her family being on the other side of the world.
“The video follows their journey throughout the day as they share their story, have the truth revealed to them and then ultimately decide if they want to take advantage of the offering,” a release about the project states.
The video will be officially launched on World Mental Health Day (Oct. 10) and will be accompanied by a pop-up event offering cuddle/touch therapy sessions to the general public with the same platonic touch therapists featured in the video.
With all the planning, ethics and COVID-19 measures, the video took 10 months to create. Still, according to Red Jay, it is a necessary project as the world started to open up again and physical touch with strangers is now back on our radars.
"Since we are having to re-learn and re-trust being in close proximity to those around us again, and it's almost like we have forgotten the tremendous benefits physical touch can have," Jay said.
The video release and launch also mark the non-fungible token (NFT) drop of the project, after Red Jay was curated to be showcased on Infinite, the carbon negative NFT Gallery. The artist is hoping to crowdfund his next project with the sales from the drop and in turn establish a sustainable model for his future artivism creations.
