Outsider Art – Mental Illness Depicted Through Art

I am an outsider.

Which makes me an outsider artist; meaning that my art is created outside the boundaries of “official” culture and the exclusive art world.

“Outsider art was coined by art critic Roger Cardinal in 1972 as an English synonym for art brut  (“raw art” or “rough art”), a label created by French artist Jean Dubuffet to describe art by those on the outside of the established art scene, such as psychiatric hospital patients.”

In this ongoing collection my work focuses on my internal struggles with, and the worlds discrimination against – mental illness.

Suffering from C-PTSD (Complex post-traumatic stress disorder) due to childhood abuse and teenage sexual violence, as well as abandonment and neglect in childhood and early adolescence. Which made me susceptible to more mental illness, which is why I also suffer from Borderline Personality Disorder and Psychotic Depression. Which brought about symptoms in the form of more mental illness; resulting in being diagnosed with Agoraphobia, Generalised Anxiety Disorder, Derealization, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Adult Attention Deficit Disorder, Body Dysmorphic Disorder and am still in recovery from an Eating Disorder.

My mission is to use art to show people on the “inside” that WE the outsiders have a voice and it needs to be heard! This also helps me communicate with fellow sufferers on the “outside”, together we fight for equality and neurodiversity.

Obstructive – By Charlotte Farhan

Chained to the Past – By Charlotte Farhan

Bad Child Crazy Girl – By Charlotte Farhan

Clouding of Consciousness by Charlotte Farhan

Everyone is Watching – By Charlotte Farhan

Make it Stop – Art and Poetry by Charlotte Farhan

Time to breathe – By Charlotte Farhan

CPTSD – By Charlotte Farhan

When I close my eyes – by Charlotte Farhan

Staying Silent – By Charlotte Farhan

Silence is Oppressive – By Charlotte Farhan

I ripped out my heart – By Charlotte Farhan

Safe Place – By Charlotte Farhan

Chained to the Past – By Charlotte Farhan

Unlocked – By Charlotte Farhan

I Can’t Look Forward – By Charlotte Farhan

Bad Child – Crazy Girl By Charlotte Farhan

The Broken Willow – By Charlotte Farhan

Splitting – by Charlotte Farhan

Art by Charlotte Farhan

How I long to walk carefree in the rain By Charlotte Farhan

Vulnerability – By Charlotte Farhan

Pain and Detachment – By Charlotte Farhan

Night Terrors – By Charlotte Farhan

As long as I am breathing – by Charlotte Farhan

Neurosis and Psychosis – By Charlotte Farhan

Exploding with Emotions – By Charlotte Farhan

Agoraphobia – By Charlotte Farhan

Losing my Identity – By Charlotte Farhan

Freedom Over Life – By Charlotte Farhan

Anxiety – By Charlotte Farhan

Like moths among the whisperings – By Charlotte Farhan

Am I real – By Charlotte Farhan

Now I lay me down to sleep – By Charlotte Farhan

The Looking Glass – By Charlotte Farhan

all eyes and ears – by Charlotte Farhan

A Kind of Healing – By Charlotte Farhan

In the Abyss – By Charlotte Farhan

For information on available originals or prints for purchase or for galleries wishing to exhibit these paintings in their venues please contact using the form below.