First Fortnight

First Fortnight is Ireland’s Mental Health Arts & Culture Festival.

First Fortnight challenges mental health prejudice and stigma through arts and cultural action and programmes events that create spaces for unscripted conversations around mental health.
First Fortnight Festival 2022 will run from January 2nd-16th.

The theme of our 11th festival in 2022 is “Open.”
During a time when it can be easy to feel disconnected, when venues have closed their doors, when families and communities had to stay apart, we want to focus on the many creative ways we can remain open.

Open to hope, to trust, to embrace a new reality filled with infinite possibilities, new ideas and change.
To open up to other people, to start conversations
To risk being seen …exactly as you are
To dare to be open and honest with who and how we are
To gently open up to explore our dreams
To be open to the challenges that may frustrate but also motivate us to find new ways

Open to find ways to embrace or return to the arts and cultural events
Open to picking up a paintbrush, a pen ,a microphone/hairbrush and diving into the wonder and experience of becoming a creator

We want this to be a festival open to everyone.