| Document ID: | LIB2005-002 |
| Document Type: | Thesis |
| Author: | Charles Johnson |
| E-mail Address: | |
| URN: | |
| Title: | "Barriers" - A Visual/Anecdotal Study of Dealing with Schizophrenia within a Family |
| |
| Degree: | M.A. |
| Department: | Liberal Studies |
| Committee Chair: | Owen F. Smith, Associate Professor of Art, Advisor |
| Chair's E-mail: | |
| Committee Members: | Constant Albertson, Assistant Professor of Art; Michael H. Lewis, Professor of Art |
| Subjects: | Schizophrenia -- Physiological aspects; Schizophrenia in children |
| Date of Defense: | 2005 |
| Availability: | |
Abstract
The origin of the work that I present for this project is a
life changing event which occurred in my immediate family
in 1993. My oldest son, Matthew, was diagnosed with
schizophrenia. The change which that one event has had upon
my wife and I and our second son is profound beyond the
scope of this page and this project. From emotional
stability to financial solvency this illness has at times
taken control of our family and both figuratively and
literally moved us in many directions. It is through the
intensity of the effects these circumstances have brought
about that I became focused upon the subject of my project.
It was through preliminary discussion with Dr. Smith about
my establishing a project that I decided upon "barriers" as
a theme and began to sort out the kinds of barriers as
problems I wanted to develop for my work. The immediate
solution for me was to limit my working materials and
create an intense time frame in which to accomplish tasks.
The visual problem I set for myself as an artist was to
confine my work to black ink. In retrospect I see that I
felt black and white was a metaphor for the trials that
Matt faced on a daily basis, that his lack of emotion and
focus seemed erstwhile and simple. The time frame that I
began in mid-June for completing drawings was an attempt to
create habit within work ethic, and while a drawing a day
seemed initially difficult, I soon discovered that habit
had become the rule. I was working all hours of the day and
night, and drawings overlapped from one day to the next.
During the drawing periods I also began to keep an
anecdotal record of time spent with and thinking about
Matt. I wanted to connect these pieces of writing in some
way to the visual works and decided to display them with
selected prints of my journal ink drawings as adjunct to my
final project. While the writings were not originally
intended as direct segments of the project, they have
become an important element to me.
My final pieces deal with my family and consist of four
larger than life portraits and one double sized central
figure that have emerged from the style and methods my
drawings have created. Each of the portraits contain
background and interlocking faces and figures that
represent the struggles and difficulties in efforts to
overcome the effects of schizophrenia for each member of my
family. The central figure piece is symbolically taken from
the focus of Christian belief, the cross, and its promise
of everlasting life. Irony here as I write this abstract on
the day before Easter, but I have found irony and
coincidence throughout the time I have worked on this
project.
My goals for this project go beyond its conclusion as I
would like to spread these works to other people touched by
mental illness as compassionate solace for what they
experience. I will publish this work myself in some form on
the Internet and I am in hopes to complete enough material
to warrant publication in hard copy.
Johnson, Charles, University of Maine, LIB2005-002
