The UC San Diego community is invited to "Breathe with Me" on October 24 – 26, 2024, a project that harnesses the healing powers of art to support mental health. “Breathe with Me," envisioned by artist Jeppe Hein, is a large-scale public participatory artwork that invites audiences to paint and breathe together, to perform a collective mindfulness exercise. 

Every breath will take the form of painted blue parallel lines on the artworks’ canvas walls: each line for an exhale. Breathe with Me is a work that is both deeply personal, and also a work that touches on many aspects of our lives, and the lives of our entire planet. Guided by the act of breathing, the participation invites audiences to reflect on themselves and the world around them. With all participant‘s painted ‘breaths’ gathered together, the artwork visualizes not only our individual awareness of ourselves, but also our communities, societies, and environment. Altogether, Breathe with Me is a collective breath for the world.

Since its launch in September 2019 at the UN Headquarters and in Central Park, New York City, during the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly, “Breathe with Me” has invited communities from all over the world to take part indifferent forms: as a public and participatory installation; as educational activations in schools and museums; and even as virtual workshops guided by the artist online. 

Registration information 

We are looking for volunteers to help guide attendees through the painting exercise - if you are interested, please reach out to Megan Theriault at mtheriault@ucsd.edu. 

Organized by Stuart Collection and the Campus Performances and Events Office.