Norman Grindley/ Staff Photographer
'Nature', by Hakim Swaby, took first place in the second Caribbean Risperdal Art competition.Georgia Hemmings, Staff Rreporter
Three Jamaicans captured top prizes in the second Caribbean Risperdal Art Competition for people with mental illnesses held recently.
Hakim Swaby's entry was awarded first prize, while Courtney Thompson and Constance Edwards were declared joint second place winners.
The third place prize was shared between Edwin Harrigan and Reginaldo Jesus Fleming, both of Curaçao, while 10 other entries received a "special mention".
The Caribbean Risperdal Art competition is organised annually by drug research/manufacturing company, Janssen-Cilag, to highlight the use of art therapy in the treatment of mental illnesses. Janssen-Cilag is a subsidiary of Johnson and Johnson and markets the drug Risperdal for schizophrenia.
Speaking about the competition, Shirley Murray, spokeswoman for Janssen-Cilag, told The Sunday Gleaner that "the event served to showcase that persons suffering from mental disorders do, in fact, have a multiplicity of talents, and are able to express themselves through art. These patients feel less inhibited by rules of society and, therefore, feel free to express themselves artistically."
Recognising and rewarding this artistic talent, as well as helping to develop the self-esteem and self-confidence of patients, was what prompted Janssen-Cilag to launch the Risperdal Art Competition.
"The idea was developed at our head office in Mexico two years ago, and we thought it would be a good idea to reproduce the concept in the Caribbean," Ms. Murray said.
Risperdal is an anti-psychotic drug developed by Janssen-Cilag, and it has proven effective in reducing the usual side effects of mental health drugs, such as the loss of motor skills, she explained.
"But, we at Janssen-Cilag believe in the treatment of the patient as a whole, and the mending of lives through a combination of drug therapy and other forms of therapy," the manager for the North-Caribbean region explained.
Through a network of Janssen-Cilag sales representatives in the Caribbean, mental health patients who displayed artistic skills were encouraged to enter the competition.
"The only criterion we had was that all entrants should be patients with a diagnosis of mental illness," the Janssen-Cilag spokeswoman explained.
One hundred and 70 entries were received from Jamaica, Barbados, Curaçao and Aruba. The winning works were displayed at the Grosvenor Galleries in Kingston last week as part of Mental Health Week activities.
"Art can assist mental health sufferers in the rehabilitation process, and enable them to make a significant and positive contribution to society," Ms. Murray told The Sunday Gleaner. "And, we at Janssen-Cilag want very much to be part of this process. After all, health care costs can be significantly reduced, as less institutionalisation is required when therapy combines new generation anti-psychotic drugs and this form of (art) therapy."
