Granada inaugurates a sculpture in homage to mental health, by the Andalusia Mental Health Federation
The sculptural piece ‘Heads and gaps’, winner of the ‘Open Mind’ contest organized seven years ago by the Andalusia Mental Health Federation, has the city of Granada as its new location. The work represents the fight against stigma in mental health.
The Mental Health Federation Andalusiatogether with the City Council and the Granada associations AGRAFEM and GRANABIP, have inaugurated the sculpture called ‘Heads and gaps’which symbolizes social inclusion and fights against the stigma suffered by people with mental health problems.
This activity is framed within the social awareness program carried out by the federation, in collaboration with the Andalusian Health Service and with the participation of the Granada City Council.
The work ‘Heads and Voids’, by the sculptor Jose Luis Martin, was the winner of the contest held by the Federation.
Manuel Movillapresident of the entity, explained to those present that the Andalusia Mental Health Federation launched this contest, seven years ago, with the aim of raising awareness in society to “to be able to eradicate the social discrimination that we suffer every day, because we, who suffer from a mental health problem, do not only fight against the disease, we also fight against a monster that is stigma”.
For Movilla, “stigma is the main barrier we find to achieve recovery and social inclusion, and this is not related to the disease we suffer from, but rather to the negative view that society in general has of us.”
Work on social awareness is crucial to ensure that people with their own experience in mental health are fully incorporated into community life, this is one of the main goals of the Andalusia Mental Health Federation.
Sensitizing the Andalusian population and changing society’s perception of people with mental health problems, eradicating discrimination and misinformation about this group is essential, since social rejection directly affects the recovery of these people.
From the associative movement of mental health of Granada (AGRAFEM and GRANABIP), as well as the Federation, they have thanked the commitment and empathy of the consistory and, very especially, its mayor, Francis Cuencafor giving visibility to the mental health community in the city.
The gratitude to the consistory has also been extended to all the institutions present at the inauguration, which was attended by, among others, Trinity Rus MillGeneral Director of Socio-Health Care, Mental Health and Addictions of the Ministry of Health and Consumption; Jose Entrains Avila, President of the Granada Provincial Council; Y Ana Vanessa GarciaGeneral Secretary of Social Inclusion of the Junta de Andalucía.
art against stigma
The author of ‘Cabezas y vacíos’, José Luis Martín, was the winner of the ‘Open Mind’ contest, organized by the Federation, which was looking for a work that represented the social inclusion of people with mental disorders some seven years ago. Since then, the work has been placed in nine points in Andalusia.
To make this sculpture, Martín wanted to represent that people with mental health problems “are socially accepted.” This has embodied it in one piece “with some mental gaps and three silhouettes of a face, which are the ones that make up the head.”
It is made of aluminum casting, with the technique of lost polystyrene with earth mould, which “as a consequence gives a unique work because each piece is carved independently, molded in the ground and cast”. That is to say, the artist makes a new sculpture every time he is commissioned: “They are repetitions of the same work made from scratch”.
The sculptor from Malaga was very involved in this project because his son has mental health problems and it is a subject that “struck a chord with him”, so he connected “from the very beginning with this subject”.
