Free Ice Cream, Free Mental Health Advice Makes Pit-Stop at Brookfield Place

At Brookfield Place, a new exhibit aimed to get rid of the taboos around mental health — and give free ice cream in the process. 

The Fandangoe Skip art initiative landed at Brookfield Place from October 6-10 after a successful tour of the United Kingdom. Frequenters of the shopping-center mammoth stopped by the brightly-colored booth in the waterfront plaza for talks, workshops and arts events; all with free ice cream from Blue Marble. Mental health-focused events included a confessional drawing workshop, a talk about community driven murals, yoga, dance workshops and even a “grief rave.” 

The project is named for artist Annie Nicholson — aka the Fandangoe Kid — who lost several family members in a tragic accident 20 years ago. Since then, bereavement has shaped the course of Nicholson’s practice, which is what gave birth to the Fandangoe Skip. See more details and the full rundown of events here. 

photo: Liz Ligon, courtesy of Brookfield Place