Art as a vital medium to articulate what is difficult to put into words, the unspeakable (i.e.madness)

I came across a short film today entitled Thou Art and directed by Jake Stratton in 2011. Thou Art is described as ‘a film of first person narratives that tells the story of the lives of artists. These are lives in which both mental illness and art have played a major role. The film draws on interviews with artists, and images of their work and their environments.

Painting by Sarah Rivers (artist interviewed in the Thou Art film)

It gives an account of the importance of artistic involvement as therapy, as expression, as career, as hobby, as passion. Thou Art also explores the barriers to artistic expression and production encountered, and the ways in which some of these barriers have been overcome. It is a forceful statement about access, about rights, about the link between mental illness and creativity, about resilience and personal fortitude’ (www.thouart.org).

In the Thou Art film,  art emerges as a vital medium to articulate what is difficult to put into words, the unspeakable, i.e. madness.

The film can be  watched on http://www.thouart.org/#/film/4550728752.