asylum
Madhouse: A Tragic Tale of Megalomania and Modern Medicine
Desperate Remedies: Psychiatry and the Mysteries of Mental Illness
This Is What a Psychiatric Ward Designed by Patients Looks Like

Kristin Hohenadel reports for Slate Magazine: “What would a psychiatric ward look like if patients designed it ? That is the question behind “ Madlove: A Designer Asylum ” from British artist and activist James Leadbitter (aka “ the vacuum cleaner ”). Leadbitter—whose work has been exhibited at venues including the Tate Modern and…
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The Lives They Left Behind: Suitcases from a State Hospital Attic
How hospitable are hospitals?

The word hospital is related to hospitable, hostel and hotel. Earlier it meant “shelter for the needy”. It comes from the Latin hospes, signifying a stranger or foreigner, hence a guest. Another noun derived from this, hospitium, came to signify…
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Mental Illness as Brain Disease: A Brief History Lesson
Madlove: A Designer Asylum
This Way Madness Lies – the asylum and beyond

This Way Madness Lies , by Mike Jay, explores the meaning of madness, or mental illness, through the prism of the institution that defined it: the asylum. Combining the perspectives of doctors and patients, artists, social commentators and reformers, it tells the story of…
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Bedlam: the asylum and beyond

Today asylums have largely been consigned to history but mental illness is more prevalent than ever, whilst our culture teems with therapeutic possibilities: from prescription medications and clinical treatment to complementary medicines, online support, and spiritual and creative practices. Against…
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