Kevin Edward Turner is an award-winning dance artist who co-founded Company Chameleon in 2007 and regularly promotes mental wellbeing.

What’s your earliest cultural memory?
My earliest cultural memory was a dance/theatre company coming into my school and performing, It was the best thing I had ever seen.

What drives you to live and work within arts and culture and is this passion shared by your friends and family?
I love working within the arts. The freedom it gives me, the ability to express myself and the wonderful artists and communities I have the privilege to work with.

If you were going to recommend only one form of culture to take part in, what would it be?
Dance and movement. It is something that is both universal and primal. Taking part in dance and movement has so many physical, psychological, emotional and social benefits, improving quality of live for all who engage with it.

In your opinion – how does taking part in creativity and culture have an impact on mental health?
Art is a way for us to better understand ourselves, each other and the world that we inhabit, it can be incredibly cathartic. From my personal and professional experience I have seen the transformative and positive impact creative and culture have on those that engage with it.

It can boost self esteem, develop a sense of achievement and success and give an outlet to explore and express ones own inner world. All having a positive impact on mental health. The creative process is collaborative whether that be other artists, participants or spectators.

You get to see your ideas valued and that is something special which aids massively in wellbeing.

How does culture make you feel?
Alive

What’s on your cultural hit-list / do you have a vision for the future?
I have so many things that I would love to do, whether that is leading, making, creating, sharing , teaching , directing or supporting other artist/people to do the same. The most important thing for my vision of the future is that my work is impactful, authentic, relevant and contributes to positive change.

Kevin is taking part in Young People and mental health: shaping our research on 6 November, join the conversation on Twitter.