The Incredible Intensity of Just Being Human

In the art and social change exhibit The Incredible Intensity of Just Being Human, curator and artist Kate Vrijmoet, and artists June Sekiguchi, Holly Ballard Martz, Ezra Dickinson, Ann Teplick, John William Keedy, Valaree Cox, and Lynn Schirmer; with writers David Francis, Gayle Clemans, and Grace Boey shed light on the effect mental illness has on individuals and society. Mental illness inflicts losses on society as a whole, through cultural messages that people who struggle with mental illness are not fit to contribute to the richness and depth of the social fabric. Every year one in four people suffers with mental illness. The cost of depression-related workforce absenteeism, and of lost productivity is $200 billion per year. By talking about mental illness, we reduce the shame surrounding it, creating a space where the prejudices and fears we all have can give way to our compassion and humanity.