Behind Walls

Katrin Luchsinger

ISBN 10: 3039420569 / ISBN 13: 9783039420568

Published by Scheidegger und Spiess AG, Verlag, CH, 2022

About this Item

Many psychiatric hospitals in Switzerland house a treasure trove of historical photographs that go back to the 19th century and until now have never been studied properly. Glass slides and negatives, loose paper prints, and photo albums allow fascinating insights into the modernisation of these establishments - and at the same time into the history of photography. The medium that was new at the time was used by psychiatrists to record diagnoses, as well as to show the public life behind institutional walls. Thanks to increasingly handy cameras, it was also possible to record the modest celebrations, and leisure and creative activities.Behind Walls introduces these testimonials of life and scientific practice in psychiatric institutions from the late 19th and early 20th centuries that are accessible to the public for the first time. The essays critically study the use of photography as a medium in psychiatry from different perspectives.Text in English and German.

Seller Inventory # LU-9783039420568

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Behind Walls
• Publisher: Scheidegger und Spiess AG, Verlag, CH
• Publication Date: 2022
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 3039420569
• ISBN 13: 9783039420568
• Binding: Hardback
• Condition: New
• Weight: 925 grams

About this title

Synopsis

Drawing on previously untapped historical photo archives in Switzerland, a visual history of the modernization of psychiatric hospitals.
 
Many psychiatric hospitals in Switzerland house a treasure trove of historical photographs that go back to the nineteenth century and until now have never been studied properly. Glass slides and negatives, loose paper prints, and photo albums allow fascinating insights into the modernization of these establishments—and at the same time into the history of photography. Even as a new medium, photography was used by psychiatrists to record diagnoses, as well as to show the public life behind institutional walls. Thanks to increasingly handy cameras, it was also possible to record the hospital residents’ modest celebrations, as well as leisure and creative activities.
 
Behind Walls gathers these visual testimonials of life and scientific practice in psychiatric institutions from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, making them accessible to the public for the first time. The accompanying essays critically study the use of photography as a medium in psychiatry from different perspectives.

About the Authors

Katrin Luchsinger is an art historian and freelance publicist and curator working on topics such as art and psychology, material cultures, and inclusion. She was formerly professor at the Zurich University of the Arts’ Institute for Cultural Studies in the Arts, where she directed various research projects on art and creativity in psychiatric institutions around 1900.

Stefanie Hoch is a scholar of cultural studies and a curator at Thurgauer Kunstmuseum in Warth, Switzerland.