The Art of Dissemination

By Doll

Conferences are not typically associated with visual appeal, let alone showcasing artwork. With some hesitation, I agreed to present a small art exhibit at the PAN event; as I entered the venue a persistent thought echoed loudly in my mind – 'you don't belong here'.

And, in the conventional academic sense with robes and degrees, I didn’t, my expertise is experience rather than education; I am an artist.

An artist living with a mental illness.

Art is my thesis, my abstraction, the outcome and the source.

I remind myself of why I am qualified to be here, why my voice and others like it not only deserve to be heard, but need to be acknowledged.

My art delves into emotions, pain, and healing – blending historical roots with newfound hope.

The narratives of asylum life have been meticulously recorded, archived, and analysed for scholarly reference, perpetuating a game of telephone through generations.

Much like the identities imposed on those residing in these institutions, the medical perspective has overshadowed the human stories.

So I share my art, my creative dissemination, my reflections, on the archival material – and though I feel a duty of care to the voices that have all but been erased, the stories themselves are not mine to tell.

Art articulates what I cannot; it bears witness without judgement or conjecture; to both their past and our future.