Fish schizophrene.

  • Charnley, Bryan, 1949-1991
Date:
[1986]
Reference:
3049667i
Part of:
Bondage paintings.
  • Pictures
  • Online

Available online

view Fish schizophrene.

Contains: 2 images

Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)

You can use this work for any purpose, as long as it is not primarily intended for or directed to commercial advantage or monetary compensation. You should also provide attribution to the original work, source and licence. Read more about this licence.

Credit

Fish schizophrene. Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0). Source: Wellcome Collection.

Online resources

  • Related materials at Wellcome Library See the related archive PP/BCH: View resource

About this work

Description

Outline of female head in profile, bound tightly in a headscarf and filled with imagery, including a fish, streets and houses, a mug, tobacco, faces, eyes, and a woman in a green dress falling head first.

Publication/Creation

[1986]

Physical description

1 painting : oil on canvas ; 81 x 91.2 cm

Biographical note

Bryan Charnley (1949-1991) was a British artist whose work illustrates his experiences of schizophrenia. In 1969 he enrolled on a BA in sculpture at the Central School of Art and Design, but left due to a breakdown. He started painting in 1978, and from the late 1980s he began to get recognition for his work, with Bethlem Royal Hospital purchasing four of his paintings. From 1987 to his death he kept a dream diary as a way of understanding his own mind. In March 1991 he decided to experiment with his medication and embarked on a series of self-portraits, a series which exposed his mental illness. The series was exhibited at the National Portrait Gallery, London, in 1995. He took his own life in July 1991.

Reference

Bryan Charnley. 1986. Fish schizophrene. [Oil on canvas]. Wellcome Collection 3049667i

References note

Charnley, J. (2018). Bryan Charnley: art and adversity, pages 116-117.
Bethlem Museum of the Mind. (2015). Bryan Charnley: the art of schizophrenia, pages 22-24.

Notes

Title provided by the Estate of Bryan Charnley.
The paintings of bound heads are described by James Charnley as 'the bondage paintings'.
Signed BJC bottom right of picture.

Ownership note

Purchased by Wellcome Collection in 2018 from the Estate of Bryan Charnley.

Type/Technique

Languages

Where to find it

  • LocationStatusAccess
    Closed stores
    By appointmentManual request

    Note

Permanent link