creative forces

Blog 17…January 2013

"What's art got to do with it?"  Isabel Fryszberg has been asking throughout her career as an occupational therapist, musician and film maker.  Since Isabel started the Creative Works Studio in the late 90"s and in many conversations we've had over the years before and since, we've both clung to the notion that art has a lot to do with everything, especially with making life better for people with mental health issues. We share many things, Isabel and I... we're neighbours, fellow occupational therapists and have both made films on subjects dear to our hearts.  Isabel has tackled two of her passions with a film featuring some of the artists who create in the Studio and to post a blog on her work is both inevitable and a pleasure for me.

From the opening shot of a Toronto streetcar to its finale at the Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibit, this film (called What’s Art Got to do With It, btw) is a delightful way to meet and gain a bit of insight into the lives of  individuals with mental illness. 

There are some common themes that emerge: the studio is described by everyone as a safe place to put aside the pain and anxiety that usually haunts their lives and to feel understood by the other artists who form a welcoming community. They feel it helps them take over the illness rather than the illness being in charge. It gives then a reason to get up in the morning, there’s a sense of freedom to express feelings as well as creativity and maybe most important of all…they have fun.

Courtney feels he can express his inner self through his art, not just the bad parts, the good parts as well… Linda finds that her photography links her to her surroundings and the reactions of people to the beauty of her photos has turned her life around… Melanie lost custody of her children during an episode of illness and the sculptured angels that she makes (and sells in the gift shop of St Michael’s Hospital) represent for her the unconditional love for those children and help her bear the pain of their absence… Peace and tranquility are what John loves… Thomas says that “even the worst day here is better than I felt before.” …Inna’s work with ceramics helped her re start her life and Yury feels that the creative work done by the artists changes the public’s view of people with mental illness and can do a great deal to reduce stigma.

Throughout the film, there are shots of the artists collaborating with Isabel, students and staff members writing and performing a catchy song that’s been bouncing around my head all week.

I go to a lot of films and I‘ve noticed in the past year or so an evolving approach to the portrayal of people with disabilities of some sort.  I’m thinking of The Intouchables, Amour, The Sessions, and Silver Lining Playbook.  The individuals involved in these works come across as having pretty much the same hopes and dreams we all do… in other words, they’re pretty much like the rest of us. This does as much or more to combat stigma (as Yury says in What’s Art Got To Do With It?)  as many of the public awareness media campaigns.  Isabel’s film is right up there, she’s planning to submit it to Hot Docs where it would have a huge audience, let’s hope it’s accepted.