A mural entitled ‘The best for you’, created by the Spanish artist Carlos Peñalver at the Saatchi Gallery in London, aims to interpret the experience of living with mental health problems.
The project grew out of a conversation the artist had over a video call with a man named Aaron, who suffered from mental health problems between the ages of 17 and 20.
After hearing Aaron’s story, Peñalver wanted to create a timeline of Aaron’s difficult 3-year journey and highlight all the things in his life that he feels he missed during his fight for mental health.
‘Travel: the healing arts’
The mural is part of an exhibition titled ‘Journeys: The Healing Arts’, which is a collaboration between the Saatchi Gallery and CW +, the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital charity NHS Foundation Trust.
The exhibition features the work of more than 20 artists, including musician Brian Eno, and explores the different communities and stories that make up Chelsea and Westminster Hospital.
This is the first time that CW + has exhibited artwork from its collection on this scale to the general public within a gallery.
Art and mental health
Peñalver completed the mural, live, at the Saatchi Gallery and took two weeks to complete in total.
As he completed the mural, he allowed visitors to see his creative process and also participate in the process.
The mural is named after the organization Best For You, a new NHS mental health program founded by CW +, among others, that aims to provide comprehensive and long-term mental health care to children and adolescents.
Carlos says he met many people during his two weeks at the gallery and found that many people, encouraged by the mural, opened up about their own mental health.
“Art can be a powerful channel to give visibility to mental health,” said Peñalver.
The exhibition ‘Journeys: The Healing Arts’ closes on January 13, 2022.
Check out the video above to get a closer look at the mural.
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