NEW INTERVIEW

1. Hello there. What is your name, your game, and favourite Canberra haunt?

My name is Catherine. My game is exploring the art within life. Favourite haunt is the National Gallery, or any town park.

2. Do you think there are connections between mental illness and creativity? Why?

There certainly may. Not every creative has a mental illness, and not every mentally ill person is creative. But certainly humans have, for a long time, connected a certain ‘madness’ with people who express things creatively. Upon doing some reading, I think this could be because of the fine line that both separate groups tread, the line of deviant thought patterns that can lead down either the path of mental illness or to a product of creativity.

3. Do you practise any creative expression yourself?

Yes, I do. I am exploring performance art, practise visual art, and write poetry from time to time.

4. Any experiences with yourself or friends, regarding mental illness, which you can say had links or effects to the products of creativity?

I find my creativeness is always at its’ peak when I’m at a particular peak or trough of a mood. When I’ve been in total anguish, I produce things to express that feeling, and they always bring back the memory of that feeling. I can go through periods of depression, interspersed with periods of a really high/happy mood which also inspire or drive me on to create. As long as the emotions are strong, or my head is a mess, I seem to be more creatively driven, for better or worse. I have some friends who suffer severe depression or bipolar, and are almost always bursting with creativity.

5. Do you think there should be more research into the topic? Why?

Definitely. Many studies done so far produce very vague conclusions. If not an answer to the overall question, some conclusions on studies/experiments would be good. Creative people, I find, are usually interested in the processes of the mind; to know why there is this link made, and how to observe it, I think they, and many others will continue to be fascinated by.

6. Who comes to mind when you think of the topic? Thoughts on their experience/life?

Daniel Johnston, and Virginia Woolf. Woolf’s life was one of inner torture and frequent anguish. The evidence is in some of her writings. It is almost as if her life, living in the midst of a deep mental illness, was also an attempt to find a way out of her suffering. Unfortunately the ending of her life also meant the end of her writing; but much can be learnt from how her writing helped her express what was going on inside.

7. Do you have any theories as to why extreme episodes of mania and depression have influenced many artists’ works?

The episodes influence their works because they are intense feelings, or fast running or confused thoughts that need to be given some voice or expression. Sometimes in this form it can give the creator a sense of control over what otherwise would run wild, scaring or stimulating them and their thoughts. They also often need an outlet to escape from the suffering that comes with mental illness; somewhere to show what they feel at their own pace.

8. Do you think there is still a lot of stigma related to mental illness? Why?

I think there is. I think people can feel afraid of what it means. They don’t know what to expect because most of the time you can’t SEE it; you can only feel it, hear it, know it because of certain signs. It’s not like being physically ill. The stigma is being worn down thanks to people talking more about it and accepting people who suffer from it, rather than being exclusive.

9. Do you think that creatives may sometimes avoid that stigma due to the praise of their talents?

Quite possibly. Many people in the performing arts don’t express such issues; many of them seem to put up a mask to cover what’s really going on. Also it may be that the media prefers to see the product but not the ‘ugly’ side of it’s production.