Sudbury artist uses his work as mental health therapy
A Sudbury artist is using his work as therapeutic self-expression in his mental health journey.
Mark Gagne runs Mindmelt Studio out of his home in Sudbury.
Describing his work as ‘cute and creepy,’ he said the art is a contrast of light and dark.
“There’s beauty in the decay, at least for me,” Gagne said.
“There’s melancholy with the light and dark and I like to explore that contrast.”
He said he’s been drawn to various facets of art since he was a child. He grew up drawing and doodling, eventually taking fine arts at Cambrian College and working in photography.
Gagne said he also struggled with mental health since childhood and was diagnosed with anxiety and depression.
“It’s just sort of something I have to live with,” he said, admitting it’s been a struggle at times.
“It ebbs and flows, but it’s a part of who I am. I feel much better about being open about it, especially with my artwork over the past few years.”
He said the exploration of the medium of his art was at the encouragement of his wife, Avril Gagne, during a time when he was especially struggling.
“He was a little depressed,” Avril said.
“He had a bunch of paint so I just said, just try painting and just get it out onto the paper.”
A Sudbury artist is using his work as therapeutic self-expression in his mental health journey. Mark Gagne runs Mindmelt Studio out of his home in Sudbury. (Amanda Hicks/CTV news)
Gagne eventually began experimenting with ink photography, applying ink to his old photos.
He said it’s been therapeutic in his mental health journey.
“It’s a kind of a way of purging these emotions and images that are circulating my brain,” Gagne said.
“Plus it’s the whole process of creation where you get this idea and you put it onto paper and it’s sort of an organic thing.”
He has been open about his struggles on social media, which he said has connected him to a larger audience.
“It was me being transparent saying ‘I’m really struggling today,’” Gagne said.
Many of his followers are appreciative of his openness.
“That they’re not struggling alone, that there’s someone else out there that is struggling with depression, anxiety, feeling unproductive,” Gagne said.
Avril says he’s come a long way.
A Sudbury artist is using his work as therapeutic self-expression in his mental health journey. Mark Gagne runs Mindmelt Studio out of his home in Sudbury. (Amanda Hicks/CTV news)
“Now he’s really focusing and feeling this and it’s coming out onto the paper,” she said.
“It’s interesting to see when he’s depressed things get darker, when he’s feeling better, things get lighter.”
She said she believes it’s important for men to be open about their mental health challenges to reduce the stigma.
“A lot of men feel like they can’t talk about these things. And they don’t want to feel vulnerable with their spouses,” Avril says.
“They don’t want to be seen (as) less than masculine but it’s more, it’s more to be vulnerable.”
Gagne said his mental health is a work in progress, but taking the first step in the journey is talking about it.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.