19Finding Our Words
‘To know that we can still create, amidst all the chaos and mayhem of losing one’s sanity and find
that our words are a powerful testament to our existence, needs to be honoured’ says Sandy Jeffs,
an artist included in The Dax Centre’s new exhibition that explores mental health issues through
poetry and visual art.
On view in Melbourne until 20 September, the show is comprised of works from The Cunningham
Dax Collection that counts 16,000 pieces in total collated from patients in Victoria’s psychiatric
hospitals from the 1960s to 80s. The select paintings, watercolour, drawings, ceramic, poetry,
video and audio works have been chosen for their ability to convey the lived-experience of trauma,
grief, stigma and belonging. Work from poets Paul Fearne, Sandy Jeffs, Tessa Gatt-Rutter, Gudrun
Hinze and Geoff Prince and visual artists; Donna Lawrence, Emma McEvoy and Elizabeth
Turnbull is displayed alongside a new installation ‘Poetry Forest’, which will grow over time as the
audience or community groups contribute.
‘Finding Our Words’ hopes to draw-out discussion and meditation on the link or complementary
nature of visual expression and the written word. In addition the showcase will encourage our
engagement and education, contributing to reducing the stigma and discrimination that can follow
mental health issues. For more information on the exhibition program please visit daxcentre.org
and if you are looking for support reach out to [email protected] or Lifeline 13 11 14.
Julie Goodwin, pages from Artist’s diary, 2001, pencil, pastel and charcoal on paper, 21 x 14.8cm each
Courtesy the artist and The Dax Centre, Melbourne