The exhibition uses the University of Sydney’s Rare Books & Special Collections to take us from the beliefs of antiquity in the ability of the liver to cause depression to the most recent neuroimaging and neuropathological understandings of how the brain might bring about our thoughts and feelings.

When: 5 December 2016-30 April 2017

Where: Fisher Library F03, Exhibition Space Level 2

Mental illness is a scourge that has always affected humanity, however our understanding of its origins and even more how to treat it has lagged. The exhibition examines the history of sometimes desperate treatments used to help people with a mental illness and our often shameful behaviour towards this vulnerable group in our society. Understanding mental health requires a detailed knowledge of neuroscience anchored in a broader psycho-social framework. Without this the power of physical treatments and the effectiveness of psychological approaches will be diminished. The exhibition illustrates the battle of ideas that have given us this knowledge.

 

Exhibition Team

Head curator: Associate Professor Anthony Harris, Discipline of Psychiatry & the Brain Dynamics Centre, Westmead Institute for Medical Research

Guest curators: Doctor Richard White, Honorary Associate, Psychiatry, Central Clinical School, Associate Professor Ivan Crozier, ARC Future Fellow, Department of History

Library curators: Emily Kang, Rare Books & Special Collections Liaison Librarian – East Asian Collection; Bernadette Carr, Academic Liaison Librarian – Medical Program; Arian Grant, Graduate Librarian, Medicine, Dentistry, Nursing, Pharmacy, Health Sciences