Those lucky enough to view the one-day pop-up Mental Health Awareness Month exhibition at Lismore Regional Gallery in late 2021 were treated to a fabulous array of artworks.
The exhibition included work from 12 experienced and emerging Northern Rivers artists. Some attended a Mental Health Month art workshop staged to help participants benefit from the restorative power of art and creativity. The exhibition was a collaborative project by local mental health organisations, coordinated by Nerida Lawson from Richmond Clarence Mental Health Services.
All the artists had a lived experience of mental health issues and recovery.
Moving around the exhibition space visitors encountered sculptures, ceramics, painted objects and drawings and paintings of all kinds.
The striking image of burlesque dancer Frankie Valentine is the work of Lismore artist Nina Best.
Nina started hearing voices three years ago at the age of 37, and was diagnosed with bipolar schizoaffective disorder, a rare mental illness characterised by symptoms of both schizophrenia and mania or depressive episodes.
‘It was a bit shocking [to be diagnosed] in adulthood, you know. I always had a fascination with schizophrenics in general; their world and things, until it happened to me. It’s very scary.’
She says her art helps her focus.
Nina’s work as an artist began early. Prior to her teenage years she was drawing portraits of family and friends and finished a correspondence art diploma when she was 12 in Amsterdam where the family lived. She also studied dance before coming to Australia at the age of 15.
‘I started crocheting these mats at first, kind of a meditational thing. That helped me through a depressive time, and then I got my studio space in South Lismore and it was time to get back to painting in a disciplined way, something I got from dancing.
‘Every day I go in as much as possible and just paint. It makes me feel like someone, like I am doing something important. It helps my mood a lot, especially the type of images that I paint. They are all about performing and strong women. I also do self-portraits. I take a photo of myself when I’m in a happy mood and paint that.’
Nina really enjoys being in her studio surrounded by her images.
‘She was pregnant at the time and I loved that image… the whole of creation within it. I’ve never been pregnant and I just love motherhood and its possibility and the empowering stance she had, the sensuality and strength. I like to explore strength and sensuality when I paint and try to create an image of myself as well. All my work is kind of self-portraits in a way,’ Nina explained.
For Nina, creating colourful images lifts her mood.
‘I like the images to pop and claim attention and provoke feelings. Getting into colour has been really great for my mental health.’
Sharlala (photo left) expresses her creativity through drawing, painting, weaving, upcycling costumes and being involved in installations and murals at small festivals.
Sharlala has been leading a nomadic life in the Northern Rivers for 20 years. When she’s not on the road she lives in an old bus beside her art studio.
She explains that her broad artistic endeavours enable her to be a high-functioning person living with autism.
‘Autism brought me to art. I call it ‘magic or madness’ – I had two choices. A recurring theme in my work is the choice between magic or madness, the polarity there. And the joining part is art and creativity, and I have never not been creative.
‘The expression can sometimes differ depending on the decade, but I need to express creativity in order to live in a high-functioning way. It feeds a lot of dopamine and endorphins into my system that my brain doesn’t naturally make.’
‘If you are a born creative, it’s almost addictive. It’s like air, you have to do it or you go crazy or get physically unwell. For us, art is not quite medicine, but it’s sustenance. But it’s a bit like addiction when I think of the amount I will sometimes spend on art supplies.’
It was during a stay at Lismore Base Hospital’s Mental Health Unit that Tigah Macey was introduced to an art program: ‘It really showed me the connection between art and mental wellbeing, and when I got out it stuck with me and I’ve never stopped.’
Tigah has created a colourful image of a mushroom especially for the exhibition.
‘The theme is ‘Tune in’ and I combined a few concepts. One was tuning into nature, going out in nature, doing Landcare stuff and working with animals. That’s been a massive part of my recovery from mental illness. And also a connection to community represented by the mycelium network.’ (The mycelium network connects plants together to communicate and transfer water, nitrogen, carbon and other minerals.)
Tigah used rainbow colours in the painting as she is a member of the Queer Community, which she says has really supported her, along with mental health peer workers locally.
She is enjoying exploring different media in her work, including collage, pastels and sand. While Tigah finds her art really helpful in dealing with mental and emotional challenges, she’s aware that everyone’s journey is different.
‘I’d encourage people just to keep looking for something. Try writing, try walking, try art, just keep looking for the right thing for you.’
