MENTAL ILLNESS AND THE ARTS

Fact. About 1 in 4 adults in the world live with a mental condition. Strangely, the extent to which mental illness is spoken about in society does a very poor job at reflecting this. The recent celebration of mental health awareness month helped to reignite the conversation that surrounds mental illness.

This post serves as a medium to spread awareness regarding mental illnesses. Many suffering from mental health issues often turn to the arts as a safe haven or even an outlet to share their stories. Having the ownership of a piece of art and using it to tell the world what you’re going through can be a very empowering tool for an artist. It can often be a center stage for people who may at times feel invisible.

In honour of this important cause, A’naala would like to recognize a few renowned artists that lived with mental conditions through out their careers. Despite their illnesses, the artwork that they have produced are some of the most influential pieces in the world.

Edit: The amazing Artsy has provided us with some additional resources just in case you wanted to know a little bit more about the artists included in this post! I'll attach them just below each segment so keep a look out!

 VINCENT VAN GOGH 

Through out his career, Van Gogh was combating frequent episodes of depression as well as anxiety. In fact, one of Van Gogh’s most famous paintings, Starry night was produced during his voluntary admission into Saint-Paul-de-Mausole lunatic asylum.

Van Gogh turned to painting as a means of therapy. Despite his anguish he wrote in a letter to his brother in 1973;

“…but still there is within me a calm, pure harmony and music. In the poorest huts, in the dirtiest corner, I see drawings and pictures. And with irresistible force my mind is drawn towards these things.”

Starry Night 1889

For more on Vincent Van Gogh: https://www.artsy.net/artist/vincent-van-gogh

EDVARD MUNCH

Munch was one of the founders of the Expressionist movement. He was hospitalized for intensified auditory and visual hallucinations as well as depression. In his diary, he described the initial conception for one of his most popular pieces, The scream. The scream was a product of one of Munch’s psychotic hallucinations. Over a period of time, Munch transformed this hallucination into a work of art.

Munch's stay in hospital stabilized his personality, and after returning to Norway in 1909, his work became more colorful and less pessimistic. He also created landscapes and scenes of people at work and play, using a new optimistic style—broad, loose brushstrokes of vibrant color with frequent use of white space and rare use of black—with only occasional references to his morbid themes.

 The Scream 1893

For more on Edvard Munch: https://www.artsy.net/artist/edvard-munch

PICASSO

Legendary artist Pablo Picasso is said to have struggled with clinical depression. The Blue Period is a term used to define the works produced by Spanish painter Pablo Picasso between 1901 and 1904 when he painted essentially monochromatic paintings in shades of blue and blue-green, only occasionally warmed by other colors. Picasso was influenced by a journey through Spain and by the suicide of his friend; Carlos Casagemas.

 -La Vie 1903

For more on Pablo Picasso: https://www.artsy.net/artist/pablo-picasso

JACKSON POLLOCK

Pollock was a drunk and a depressive but was hailed a master of 20th century art. Trying to deal with his established alcoholism, Pollock underwent Jungian psychotherapy with Dr. Joseph Henderson. Henderson engaged him through his art, encouraging Pollock to make drawings. Jungian concepts and archetypes were expressed in his paintings.

Autumn Rhythm 1950

For more on Jackson Pollock: https://www.artsy.net/artist/jackson-pollock

YAYOI KUSAMA

Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama voluntarily checked herself into a psychiatric institution in the 1970s at the advice of her psychiatrist. She became a permanent resident there and continues to reside at the institution to this day. In an interview with BOMB, she says abut her work, "My art originates from hallucinations only I can see. I translate the hallucinations and obsessional images that plague me into sculptures and paintings".

 

 Pumpkin 2010

For more on Yayoi Kusama: https://www.artsy.net/artist/yayoi-kusama

Lastly, I'd like to mention a really interesting initiative founded in 2015 –The exhibition, Mindful: Exploring Mental Health Through Art, features works created by several contemporary artists. The project explores the impact that mental illness is having on society, and the role the arts can play to both encourage positive self-expression and guide effective mental health promotion and treatment.

It is currently on tour at Daura Gallery, Lynchburg College

September 14 - December 10, 2016.


- Eme Ukpong