"I sometimes, almost impulsively and compulsively, make art to self-soothe. I've noticed that some people with mental illness are drawn to the arts, and there is definitely some correlation between art and ADHD from studies I've read, in particular relating to the impulsivity and art.
Personally, I found the fine art world to be intimidating, judgemental and unsafe. My first love is within the mental health care sector, especially helping people through art. Art itself doesn't mean as much to me if it isn't connected to these things.
At some point I felt the need to try and categorise and explain my ideas to myself before they happened, otherwise I would keep asking myself: “ok great, I love drawing. but now what and why? How do I approach the topic of mental health and start an important conversation around recovery? And why?”
ADHD doesn’t work like that for me. If I rationally plan something, its unlikely to go in the direction I want and will instead result in a feeling of failure, a familiar and predictable experience for me. However, if a strong emotion is the driving force in my execution, then the result is often much more profound. Whether or not that evolves into something of worth, outside of my own mind, is a different story but for me it holds meaning." See more of Carrie's work on instagram & website #ADHD #arttherapy #mentalhealth