Ethan Bennett
Prince’s Drop
Named after the scientific phenomenon regarding an object that is impossibly strong from
most perspectives but fragile when targeted, this ongoing project is an exploration of the
inner psyche and how melancholia is being increasingly conveyed in more nuanced
methods.
The masculine experience, in particular, plays a fundamental role in navigating this, the
project beginning with examining my own experience with the simultaneous delicacy and
fortitude that possessing mental disorders involves. The notions of the visual artist’s
‘affective labour’, theory surrounding the origin of emotions and physical manifestation has
also proved instrumental in determining the direction of this series. The latter section of the
project resulted in expanding my scope to interrogate the nature of psychological imbalance
for those other than myself, looking at the shared male inner experience instead.
The project has involved experimentation with a variety of image-making methods and an
approach to the depiction of male mental health that emphasises a focus on abstract forms
and the empowerment of the mundane to convey complex topics such as moral crises,
anxious compulsions and mania.
Every piece I complete enables me to further the healing from the trauma of my past,
allowing me to use photography and videography as a means of stabilising and externalising
my experience. I hope this series empowers those also afflicted by mental disability and
provides a unique viewpoint, looking at such discussions through the lens of OCD, a typically
underrepresented disorder.