Companion

This exhibition highlighted the experiences of anonymous queer artist, Companion, who lives with Bipolar I Disorder. This series focused on illustrating the fragility of the human mind and the need for mental health care. Through eerie scenes and the bizarre, Companion shares what they remember as experienced in psychosis. Each painting was their attempt to create a physical expression of their delusions, paranoia, pain, and fear.
To better facilitate the general experience of this exhibition, our program invited the Student Art Therapy Association to hold an event centered around engagement with the exhibition and the concepts and themes of the artist's paintings. The Letters to Companion event included cards which explained Bipolar Disorder and psychosis, along with questions to consider. Participants were invited to reflect on the exhibition through art making, or writing a letter to Companion directly. There were also bags of materials for self soothing and stress busting that students were welcome to take home with them. Works made for the artist were collected and passed along when the exhibition concluded.