‘Losing one’s sense of self’ was a collaborative project with King’s College London’s Department of Basic & Clinical Neuroscience and fellow artist Iris Musel, brokered and supported by the Cultural Institute at King’s. The project was a pilot research study which aimed to understand and raise awareness of the effects of frontal lobe injury on an individual’s sense of self.
‘An injury that affects the frontal lobes of the brain can result in cognitive impairments that are life changing. People with frontal lobe injury often report that their personality and social interactions have altered as a result of the injury. These changes are not well understood medically’ Dr Gerald Finnerty, Finnerty Lab, KCL
We explored these changes by using creative research methods to help affected individuals communicate their lived experience.
Piece by Piece
I created ‘Piece by Piece’ in response to the personal experiences shared by the project participants and members of Headway (the brain injury association). Inspired by the bicycle helmet belonging to one of the group (who sustained her brain injury in a road traffic accident), the work uses a helmet and other safety clothing as a metaphor to explore the rebuilding of a new version of one’s self following a brain injury.
The helmet and clothing have been opened up, insides revealed, and broken into component parts. Pieces form organic, irregular shapes, that reference the body. Turned inside-out and upside-down, some parts remain missing.
Capturing a moment in the process of repair and reassembly, the arrangement and treatment of the pieces is influenced by the way in which the brain remodels to recover and adapt following injury. Parts are reorganised and modified to form new connections. Raw edges are smoothed, pieces reshaped and adjusted so they can join together.
Look more closely and you notice some incongruous combinations. Some pieces remain jumbled. Knots and tangles make for untidy and fragile joins whilst some connections are stronger and function better. Pieces are brought together but there are twists, frayed edges and loose threads. Some parts remain disconnected. The resulting assembly is familiar and yet different.
Alongside this a manual for ‘Your SELF’ offers guidance on the components that make up our personality and identity and the process of getting to know your new self following a frontal lobe brain injury.
Participants Art Work
Participants were guided through a series of creative interviews and workshops during which they each created their own work as a means of self-expression. Using personal photographs, objects, text, drawing and painting, they each created a visual representation of their sense of self in the form of an artist’s book. None of the participants had any previous artistic experience.
The work was exhibited at the Maudsley Hospital, South London as part of the Arts in Mind Festival at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King’s College London, 2018. Alongside the artist’s work, the exhibition presented an alternative version of a ‘self-portrait’ by each participant, created from a collection of their artist’s book, personally significant images and objects, and a statement in their own words. Through the exhibition, and a public workshop, we aimed to raise awareness about the effects of frontal lobe brain injury and offer insight into how this can effect an individual.
I’d like to thank the project participants for their generosity in sharing their personal experiences, collaborators Dr Gerald Finnerty and colleagues at the Finnerty Lab, KCL, fellow artist Iris Musel and members of Headway (the brain injury association) for their support with this project.
More information about the project and King’s College London’s Arts in Mind Programme here https://www.kcl.ac.uk/Cultural/-/Projects/Losing-ones-sense-of-self.aspx
Photography: Alex Lloyd on behalf of King’s College London