The Unclouded Mind

My new exhibition inspired by a visit to Hellingly Mental Asylum.

at Copro Gallery

http://www.copronason.com/

 opening on 10th December 2011

The Unclouded Mind

Mental asylums may seem a curious, if not to say odd wellspring for creative inspiration. But to me they offer a tender and liberating subject which quietly worms its way through the imagination. My interest in these long abandoned institutions- as neglected by society as their former inhabitants- was awakened by a desire to pass beyond their shadowy facades. A surreptitious visit to the now derelict Sussex county hospital in the village of Hellingly, drew me further into the labyrinthine possibilities for artistic exploration. The silent interiors and vacant corridors are being reclaimed by nesting crows and creeping ivy. Wards which once echoed with chattering and imbalanced minds crumble into ruins. The long departed residents are retreating ghosts who have made the walls their home. 

Photos taken on 20th April 2011 by Xue