Mary Barnes
Mary Barnes played an important role in Dr Joseph Berke's life. It was the 1960's and with R. D. Laing at Kingsley Hall, where he helped Mary Barnes, a nurse who had been diagnosed with schizophrenia to emerge from madness. Barnes later became a famous artist, writer and mystic.
A life of transformation
Stage Play: Mary Barnes (adapted by David Edgar) Performed in many cities in the United States, England, Continental Europe, South America and Australia.
Latest performances: Mermaid Theatre, London and Odyssey Theatre, Los Angeles, 1995
Radio: Mary Barnes (adapted by David Edgar) BBC Radio 4 June 95
Film: Mary Barnes (under adaptation in France)
Opera: Mary Barnes (possibly under adaptation)
Television: A Celebration of the Life and Work of Mary Barnes, Kinsgley Hall, 25 November 2001. Click here to see this programme
The Madness in Me (Documentary on the Arbours Crisis Centre), BBC 'One Life' series, screened on June 21 2005
Mary Barnes Performances
Mary Barnes remains a unique example of art’s power of hope, healing and recovery. An extraordinary figure, she was trained as a nurse but would unlock ingrained talents and felt reborn into an artistic journey following a mid-life mental health crisis and her time spent undergoing revolutionary, countercultural treatment.
Living from 1965 to 1970 at Kingsley Hall in London, an experimental therapeutic community, and working with Dr. Joseph H. Berke, she was encouraged to regress to a child-like state to live through and recover from her psychosis.
This site provides access to her art, writings and updates about past and upcoming events and exhibitions exploring the life and work of this extraordinary individual.
Exhibitions & Updates
Exhibition @ The Falkland Estate, Falkland, 1-27 February 2024
Rebirth & Revolution: the Life and Legacy of Mary Barnes
Exhibition @ The ARC Glasgow, 6-21 October 2023
The themes of crucifixion, resurrection, and her deep connection to nature feature, linked to her rebirth and recovery, and the sense of belonging she found in her adopted Scottish homeland.
Out of the Shadow
Review of Mary Barnes Rebirth & Revolution exhibit at Mazumdar-Shaw Research Centre, Glasgow University, Oct 2023
Mary Barnes: A Tour of Works in Store @ Glasgow Museums Resource Centre, Glasgow
A tour of works by Mary Barnes in the Glasgow Museums Resource Centre store, led by Dr Anthony Lewis, curator of Scottish History, Glasgow Life Museums.
Falkland celebrating life and legacy of self taught artist Mary Barnes
This special event reflects upon Mary Barnes’s life in Scotland, her deep connection to nature and her spiritual beliefs.
Mary Barnes: Boo-Bah Review
Dr Victoria Tischler, Senior Lecturer in Psychology at London College of Fashion, reviews the show and the opening night.
Mary Barnes: Boo-Bah, Bow Arts, Nunnery Gallery, London
Prolific outsider artist Mary Barnes (1923-2001) is represented in an exhibition featuring paintings and drawings spanning her artistic career which began in the 1960s in Bow, East London.
Exhibition @ SPACE Mare Street 5 Nov 2010 – 8 Jan 2011
Focusing principally on her time at Kingsley Hall (1965-70), Mary Barnes presents painting, drawing, sculpture and writing produced by Barnes alongside an extensive archive of documents, films, audio recordings and photographs relating to her work and the legacy of R.D. Laing’s thought.
Rebirth & Revolution! A celebration of artist Mary Barnes
A celebration of the life and legacy of renowned self-taught artist Mary Barnes (1923-2001) is to take place in her centenary year, as part of this year’s festival.
Rebirth: a celebration of the life and work of Mary Barnes
Falkland Estate is glad to be celebrating the centenary of Mary Barnes, artist, writer and a Falkland resident during the 1980s and 90s and who is buried in Falkland cemetery.
Mary Barnes: archive - Wellcome Collection
Records relating to Mary Barnes' life and artistic process, including creative writing, writing about her mental health experiences and time at Kingsley Hall, scrapbooks and photographs, early artworks, and other personal writing and papers.