A new ‘Museum of the Mind’ will open its doors in February 2015. The museum, based at Bethlem Royal Hospital in South London, will explore the history of Bethlem using art, objects and personal stories. Through this we hope to encourage people to talk more about mental health and challenge the stigma that still surrounds it today.
There will be an opportunity to find out more about the new museum on World Mental Health Day, 10 October 2014. This free event, supported by Maudsley Charity and the Heritage Lottery Fund, is being hosted by the Cinema Museum, which is a short distance away from Bethlem Royal Hospital’s former site in St George’s Fields. Spaces are limited for the talk and film screenings, so booking is recommended.
- 12.30pm Doors open
- 1.00pm Tours of the Cinema Museum
- 2.00pm Talk by celebrated laughter therapist, Alice Hortop
- 3.30pm Complimentary tea, cake and comedy films
- 5.00pm Talk by museum staff on artist William Kurelek
- 6.00pm Film screening: William Kurelek’s The Maze (2011)
- 7.10pm Complimentary tea and biscuits
- 7.30pm Screening of Harvey (1950) in the small cinema and Chaplin shorts in the main hall
William Kurelek’s The Maze is a documentary about the life of celebrated Canadian artist William Kurelek, dramatically told through his paintings and his on camera revelations. The film takes an intimate look into the life of one of the 20th century’s most fascinating artists and his struggles with attempted suicide and a self professed ‘spiritual crisis’. Kurelek describes The Maze as ‘a painting of the inside of [his] skull which [he] painted while in England as a patient in Maudsley and Netherne psychiatric hospitals.’
Harvey is a delightful black and white comedy-drama starring James Stewart and Peggy Dow, based on the play by Mary Chase and directed by Henry Koster. Due to his insistence that he has an invisible six-foot rabbit for a best friend, a whimsical middle-aged man is thought by his family to be mentally unwell – but he may be wiser than anyone knows.
TICKETS & PRICING
Entrance is free to this event.
Booking for the 2pm talk and 6pm and 7.30pm film screenings is now open on Eventbrite – helpful but not essential!
