Silencing in the Arts 🤫

Coping with workplace power imbalances

The following are some strategies for navigating difficult situations within a workplace from a mental health perspective:



  • Acknowledge the power imbalance
    Recognize what you can and cannot control.


  • Prioritize your safety
    Leave the environment when it is safe and feasible, securing alternative employment or a temporary safety net if possible.

  • Seek emotional support
    Processing emotions can be overwhelming, especially in powerless situations. Therapy can help you work through workplace trauma.

  • Validate your experience
    Gaslighting can occur in toxic workplaces. Seek support to affirm your understanding of what happened.

  • Find community
    Connect with others who recognize and resist institutional abuse. Share your experiences with trusted people and build supportive networks.
Silencing in the Arts is a research project that traces the extent and impact of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) on the Canadian visual arts sector. The project aims to shed light on the culture of silence that permeates the artworld, and the cycles of abuse, professional misconduct, and censorship that are perpetuated as a result.
Have you signed, or been asked to sign, a legal agreement that prevents you from speaking about your experience working with a Canadian arts organization? Please consider contributing to vital research through this anonymous survey.

Take the Survey Now!  
A Project by Aisle 4

Funded by the Canada Council for the Arts Sector Innovation & Development Program

"Shhh" drawings by anonymous artists
Website Design & Development by Studio Whyte-Gray, 2025.