For anyone who can see this, please share a piece of research you find interesting related to our group theme.

(Can be a Book, Artwork, Film - Anything you find interesting!)

(Mainly focuses particularly on PTSD patients and their experiences in treatment, and unlike other books i read it felt less clinical as there is an agency to let the reader to learn about the patients on a personal level)

Art Therapy:

In Section 5 : Paths to Recovery, it details different approaches to recover from trauma, one of which is art therapy.

• Writing to self, do not have to send the letter to anyone but learn about feelings once read through yourself : The act of responding to an object and letting feelings flow.

  
  

• James Penne Baker’s study of getting victims to write/ record traumatic stories notices a “switching”, changing in writing style/ voice when talking about different things e.g. childish voice when talking about what they going to do that day, to mature voice when talking about stealing £100

  
  

  When writing about deepest fears, writing becomes more “childlike”

  
  

• James Penne Baker and Anne Krantz made patients “Dance in relation to their trauma and write about it”

“The mere expression of the trauma is not sufficient. Health does appear to require translating experiences into language” Pg 290

E.g. Drawing what he saw during the 9/11 tragedy but re-assessed this traumatic experience in a positive manner by drawing trampolines to save the survivors jumping out of the building

While traumatized people are stuck in the moment, the body continues to defend against a threat that belongs in the past.

I found the act of drawing a traumatic experience can be liberating as the patient would have more autonomy on the scenario, being able to draw a 'solution' or reassess the scenario externally from their mind. (With a fresh pair of eyes)

While acknowledging what has happened is in the past, and the act of drawing in the present is drawing from a past experience not currently happening.

Apart from the color of the paper, the artist stated that the sound and rhythm of the scissors are very important to her, so she wanted to pass these sounds to the audience and let them hear. Therefore, she will arrange microphones and sounds around the performance, and as the audience gets closer to her, the sounds of breathing and scissors and paper will become more and more clear.

We can also create a space for people to communicate in different directions that make them more susceptible to stress, and they can listen or communicate. (e.g. work, study, friends, love, etc.)

-“when pain is a stimulus, suffering is the response, understood as the protest made by the organism” pg 8

-“pain presents itself as something which by its very nature is against me” pg 8

-World Health Organisation: ‘health’ = complete a sense of pain

-‘declaration of war against pain’

-pleasure = positive, pain = negative

-Writer begins to question when does the sensation of pain becomes desired rather than seen as negative

-Natural disposition to seek that “good” (pleasure)

-“it is equally true that it (pain) turns us on , excites us and that we actively seek it. In short, pain is not something neutral” page 11

-pain is charged

-Is pain as uniform a phenomenon as we have provisionally assumed?

-if someone strike someone with an axe to the leg, due to striking deliberately or inadvertently.

-is someone intentionally injured themself, initial reaction will be psychological rather than moral

-starting on the “outside”, “we can observe other people’s pain, just as we can observe our own” pg 13

-relief : the human response and intervention that pain regularly asks for (pg 14)

1.) Pain in Extremis : Torture

-“Torture : man’s most refine method for forcing a person in utter, totally abandonment of-or withdrawal from a every thing that normally constitutes the extra-physical in existence” pg 15

-“The person enters torture as a human being and is dragged out as an animal, still alive when considered as a body, but lifeless as a human subject…” pg 15

-The body in pain by Elaine scurry!!! I know this person!!

•pain does not have any object, physical pain is an intentional state, not possible to refer to

in the world.

•differs from physical/mental characteristics by not pointing towards an object in the outside world

•objectless = languagness

“To be in pain is to have absolute certainty”

•pain is not an emotion, it’s a state

-scurry states : pain is the means to the end for torturers, information is just pretend motive (pg 18)

^^ provides a  appearance of “psychological- motivational basis and moral justification “

-infliction of pain makes the world feel unreal, only the pain feels real, “the body consists of pain, the body is the pain and the pain is the body” pg 20

-presence of pain = loss of the world

“Only when the body is taken care of, when it’s functions are intact and the body operates within secure surroundings, can consciousness interact with all the sense and address the outside world” Pg 21

-trick of the torturer is to make the victims body it’s worst enemy, which annihilates the victim’s world

-denial of pain/ objectifying pain makes it easy for torturer to continue

-objects from the physical world used to satisfy the body’s needs used against them eg knife, bottles etc

2.) lasting pain : illness

-chronic pain/ illness : life is reduced to just pain, and life “is” pain, Taken advantage by a healthy person

-ontological division, can’t assume one pain is the same to another

-“it is my body as a human body that determines what cases pain, not me as a unique individual and as a bearer of my own body” pg 28

•        being sick while hospitalised means ur world is reduced to the small room you are isolated in. “The button that calls the nurse seems, in the proverbial length of time for a response, an impotent scepter. The bed is made while the patient is moved from side to side, as powerless as a baby being diapered” Pg 25

•        “In health we know we are alive by our connectedness to the world. When we are totally disconnected, we are dead.” Pg 27

•        Reaction to being sick/ receiving a diagnosis varies from patient to patient E.g one man, a decisions analyst, was diagnosed as having TB and his hospital room had books scattered around to romantise the diagnosis as being the role of a TB intellectual in the 19th century.

-hopeless = disconnected

“A patient suffers from some unknown illness for a while causing joint + muscle pains 

"A virus," says one doctor. "Probably psychosomatic," says another.

"Learn to live with it," others say. During these months the patient knows that something is wrong but becomes increasingly withdrawn because society refuses to grant him the right to what the sociologists call "the sick role."” Pg 29

^disconnects the patient from the “social group”

-Claude Lévi-Strauss’ ‘Structural Anthropology’

“On every occasion and by every action, the social body suggests death to the unfortunate victim who no longer hopes to escape what he considers to be his ineluctable fate.” Pg 30

“Experience is the enemy of comfort and continuity because it portends the surety of death, but our knowledge is no match for the powerful sense of omnipotence in all of us that denies the possibility of destruction .” Pg 30

^ momento mori

-denial or hyper-anxious over symptoms

-watching a patient/ loved one lose their omnipotence

-pain distorted by experience and fear, man got tb, been to ww2 and worried about going back to the sanatorium

-“we may not understand exactly why, the sick may reason differently from the well. Fear and other feelings all play their part; but further, in serious illness the very processes of thought change.” Pg 39

“Dignity is a luxury for the healthy” pg 44

That is because “Physical pain does not simply resist language but actively destroys it.''

Doctors unfortunately sometimes do not believe the Patient when they are expressing pain due to the fact the Patient does not possess the 7 years of Medical Education to use terminologies to articulate their pain despite them being the ones suffering. Making Language in-accessible.

However, through this installation, we can try to bridge the disconnect as artists and not medical professionals, allowing ways to communicate struggles and emotions in ways that doesn't require verbal language or terminology.

Visual Arts is a viable alternative of expression where words, spoken or written, cannot articulate an concept / emotion/ trauma etc - Julia

From the Test Workshop and speaking to the others in the group, quite a few of us found nature as a calling for calmness. From the Sounds that soothes, to the surrounding trees and bodies of water that shelters, as well as the smell of the earth and wood being cathartic.

Nature through history and literature has been described as a healing source. For instance, Mary Shelly's 'Frankenstein' (1818) has nods to the Romanticism movement, an 18th century Intellectual / Art movement that focused on the expression of emotions and feelings as well as promoting nature as a healing source over scientific development in fears that human intervention interferes with nature / 'playing God'.

In the story, The Monster is seen retreating to natural landscapes escaping Victor who fears him, and refuses to help him be happy e.g. make him a partner

Even Victor is seen to retreat to nature to find solace

Quotes relating to Nature:

“Soon a gentle light stole over the heavens and gave me a sensation of pleasure. I started up and beheld a radiant form rise from among the trees. I gazed with a kind of wonder. It moved slowly, but it enlightened my path; and I again went out in search of berries.''

Chapter 11

''I wept like a child. “Dear mountains! my own beautiful lake! how do you welcome your wanderer? Your summits are clear; the sky and lake are blue and placid. Is this to prognosticate peace, or to mock at my unhappiness?”

Chapter 7

Was made to fold a piece of paper into four parts and instructed us on what to draw. The first two were the sun and moon which is easily representational. Then she asked us to draw a tree which required time to think about what type of tree? will there be fruit? Last prompt was to draw whatever we liked, which was difficult to do. To ensure a better chance of participation, you have to make the work accessible.

-Be Cautious about how we utilise smell and sound as certain smells can be triggering trauma e.g. a patient of hers reacted badly to the smell of lavender oil which was intended to relieve anxiety but instead aggravated a PTSD flashback. Nicky suggested if we use smell, bring something neutral that can be switched off at any time.

-We need to make sure to bring in more accessible materials and tools for those not familiar with art making, such as glue and tape, as one participant found it stressful trying to emulate sewing onto a leaf the way another participant (who has a textiles practice) has done.

-Make a materials list to make sure participants are not too overwhelmed by choice.

-But we had an interesting session, i noticed a lot of the participants would draw from nostalgia and memory more than creating a new space, such as Sophie using textiles and aspects of the poem she had written during the writing workshop to create a piece representative of the way her Grandma has taught her to sew before passing and the simple act of stitching not only brought her peace but made her feel close to her grandma. So her contribution was super meaningful and representational, which is the type of works we want to encourage in the workshop!

I will introduce our participants into the workshop, make sure everyone is consenting and reminders they can step out any point - I aim to ease them into the making by idea generative exercises to not only allow them to warm up creatively, but have everyone comfortable with the setting

Wenjie and Crystal: Guiding the creation of the installation

ALL MEMBERS (apart from Shiying) MUST IDEALLY PARTICIPATE IN THE MAKING - Wenjie and Crystal's role is to talk about the idea behind the structure and give an example of what can be made with a live demonstration.

Shiying: Documentation / Note Taking

Shiying /Carlos is the 'outsider' during the session, documenting in any form (video/sketch / writing/sound) to observe the function of the workshop as someone not directly participating. Also, Carlos can observe the effects/mannerisms of participants during the workshop!

Jiali: Reflection

After the main bulk of the workshop wraps up, Jiali will initiate the final stage of the workshop with a reflection, to not only get feedback on the benefits of the session/experiences from the participants but having an open discussion that will allow participants to form a community as their voices are valued even after the making.

Also, reflection is so important to help receive feedback to improve the workshop to the best of our ability!

-Carla had experience with running workshops utilising Art Therapy Techniques, and really encouraged us to just experiment with the format.

-She suggested for us, in an Artist perspective, to give materials to the participants but not tell them what to do or what is expected of them during the workshop. Just start making alongside them.

-We initially worried about having to be too careful with ethics that actually, by being Artists and not licensed therapists, we have more liberty to play around with how we get participants to engage with the material.

As the aim of the workshop is to 'Create a safe environment', i want to encourage participants to draw from positive experiences or create a positive scenario. So I Plan to have a 5 - 10 minute exercise where I prompt the participants to write about a time they felt at peace, or create a scenario where they would be at peace if they do not have any prior memories or experiences. I understand writing is not everyone's strongest point, so it will be in free form. People will have the choice to write a poem, make a list of words, a script, whatever seems to resonate with them at the moment of time

The writing exercise in the test workshop was effective in the way that it started a conversation among the participants, and was a way for me to take note on how they would respond to the exercise.

I had noticed that everyone drew from a childhood / fond experience as opposed to making a new scenario or safe space. There is comfort in familiarity.

Nicky said how i can be more specific in the writing exercise to encourage participants without them feeling like they have been put on the spot.

So i thought about how i can be specific enough in my question, while being able to give creative liberty.

I ended up coming up with the idea of writing a small poem to introduce the writing section, as giving an example, could create a sense of familiarity / an indication of how they can approach writing. When coming up with this poem, i wanted to tie in the theme of nature being an emotional healing source so I drew inspiration from Mary Shelly's depictions of romanticism in Frankenstein to suggest the sub-theme while establishing the calm environment through spoken word. I intend to play some natural ambient sounds to reflect the text, and it could sway the participants to draw inspiration from their experiences with nature / the outdoors as opposed to nostalgia. or maybe nature's roots find themselves tying our familial bounds / other relationships to nature? We shall see!

hARTslane: In New Cross Gate, commonly used by RCA / UAL / Goldsmith students in the past, i have experience hosting an exhibition here before - spacious, workshops have been hosted in the space before and it can be transformed into an exhibition space if we decide to host a PV, and its affordable (approx £20 per day)

However, it is pretty derelict inside which may not be an inviting space visually, but we can definitely transform it!

Other mentions by Jiali :

-Bermondsey Project Space

-Bomb Factory

-Guest Project Space

It is created to exhibit artists who are current or former patients of Bethlem Hospital, with a practice tied to mental health experiences/awareness or anything related to mental health.

There have been shows in the past that artwork made during Art Therapy sessions have been displayed (with consent/art work is very old that the patient are already long gone)

So I got into contact with Bethlem Gallery and unfortunately, they did not have any currently practicing Art Therapists for us to speak to.

However, the woman I spoke to suggested I search/contact Art Therapists via The British Association of Art Therapists.

I thought the use of writings and suspending of silhouettes onto string, and having these elements be tied to representing experiences/struggles with mental health could help us think about ways we can depict these stories through simple repetitive making (to be used for everyday life as outlet / coping mechanism)

I thought the use of writings and suspending of silhouettes onto string, and having these elements be tied to representing experiences/struggles with mental health could help us think about ways we can depict these stories through simple repetitive making (to be used for everyday life as outlet / coping mechanism)

-Home page: can have video of a 360 of installation, small introduction, Menu leading to the pages

-About Project: summary of the project, final workshop and what we want from the website (an open dialogue, other artists to participate!)

-Chat/posting: the Main bulk, we want people to post their sessions / ideas / outcomes!

-About Us: A page with our names, course, and disciplines/practice!

-Development: we can publish Shiying's documentation, i can write notes to add to website!

'if I walked down by the riverside, would the tranquillity of the movement of the water and nature’s presence heal me by existing, or is there some other force within each being communicating with me?'

Panpsychism: belief that all things have 'mind like qualities'