Manicómio: It’s not an illness, it’s art

/ Award-winning case study
When art is the best argument against the stigma of mental illness.

Manicómio: It’s not an illness, it’s art

/ Project Overview
Year:
2019
Customer:
Manicómio
Services:
PR

Challenge

Manicómio is a social and cultural project that aims to legitimize artists with mental illnesses and end the stigma associated with these patients in Portugal. At the Beato space, artists who were previously hospitalized in centers such as Júlio de Matos in Lisbon, where the project was initially conceived, work daily. Corpcom has been supporting Manicómio from the beginning, focusing on two major challenges: distancing the project from hospital settings and ensuring the press focuses on the artists' work and stories, rather than their clinical condition. The positive visibility of Manicómio as an integral part of contemporary Portuguese art is also what attracts partnerships and sponsorships from national and international companies.

2019
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2019

Strategy

The outreach was structured in three phases. First, interviews with co-creator Sandro Resende in influential media outlets to introduce the Manicómio concept to companies and brands before the opening. Then, an exclusive first look for a journalist specializing in social and cultural issues to give relevance to the launch. Finally, broad coverage in the culture and society sections of newspapers, radio, and television, with interviews and an exclusive focus on the artists.

01
02

Results

Media coverage turned Manicómio into one of the most compelling social causes of 2019. The project was visited by the President of the Republic and various brands looking to support it, ranging from food and jewelry to the automotive industry. The Minister of Health publicly commended the project in May, and even Madonna's team expressed interest in organizing a visit.

/ Proven Impact

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