In Brief | Art
→ See also: Writing
→ See also: Speaking
I had a breakdown
A large part of my recovery, starting in psychiatric hospital, was through making art.
I’d always wanted to be an artist, long before I became a writer.
When I was 14, I submitted a painting to an adult competition in London and won a special award.
Today, art is a major part of how I make a living
(Hurrah! Hurrah hurrah!)
It helps me make sense of what is difficult, and to find beauty in the everyday.
I particularly enjoy making pictures of people and places with stories.
That picture I painted when I was 14? It was a seascape, but it was also about people: a couple stood on one side, and a solitary figure on the other.
I’ve never stopped being interested in connection / exclusion.