Kathleen Connellan

The Psychic Life of White: Power and Space:

This paper casts a net across spaces that are designed to be bland and identity-less. It posits that white is more than just a colour in design and that it is appropriated by organizations to spread sameness across public spaces. In this way, the article draws upon Foucauldian theories of power and organizational aesthetics in an effort to show that people become caught up in an institutionalization of space. White spaces become infused with an energy that is also derived from plain surfaces and which then offers up an illusion of spatial order. The article uses examples of the church, the parliament building, the prison, the hospital and the university to discuss ways in which whiteness transcends the limits of temporal colour and enters the psyche as an agent of power in the control of spaces and subjects.

A systematic review of research on psychiatric mother-baby units

Psychiatric mother-baby units (MBUs) are currently viewed as best practice, particularly in the UK, Australia and France, for improving outcomes for mothers and babies when the former are experiencing severe forms of mental illness. A growing number of publications have examined MBUs, but to date, there has not been a comprehensive review of these studies. As such, the systematic review reported in this paper sought to address this gap. A systematic search was conducted for peer-reviewed research and grey literature published in English between 2000 and 2015. A final sample of 44 publications were identified that reported on empirical findings with regard to MBUs. Three quarters of the studies focused on individual MBUs and most studies were quantitative. A thematic analysis of the studies identified three major themes: (1) admissions data, (2) outcomes for mothers, and (3) programmes and interventions. The analysis also identified four secondary themes: (i) follow-up after discharge, (ii) separation of mothers and babies after discharge, (iii) client satisfaction with MBUs, and (iv) partners of women admitted to MBUs. The findings of the review highlight gaps in knowledge about MBUs and provide suggestions for future research.

White, the Color of Whispers: Concealing and Revealing Cloth

Abstract This article focuses on the color white as a choice for interpreting subtleties in visual art practice. It questions the application of white cloth as an aid towards the disclosure and nondisclosure of cruelty. French philosopher Michel Foucaults lectures at the Collège de France, as well as some of his earlier work, form the basis for a discussion on the invisibility of power relations. The Australian artists included in this article are only used as examples for a broader discussion on the versatility of white and whiteness as evidenced in materials such as cloth. The article addresses a particular “white” aesthetic used to communicate ugly histories and realities. Specifically this article will look at how the color white is a signifier of ambiguous meanings in race and representation. It will question whether the color white is deliberately chosen for its ability to dim and erase messages of pain and cruelty whilst simultaneously looking “beautiful.” Furthermore, the role of white cloth as providing the ideal prop in the form of a veil will contribute to the argument that the flimsiness of thin white material has the panoptic power to conceal and reveal cruelty.

Light lies: how glass speaks

Light illuminates but also reflects, and when the medium of glass is a dominant design material it communicates within the architectural space. In this paper we suggest that the transience of light and transparencies of glass posit a duplicity that is aesthetically seductive but communicatively misleading. Specifically, the central aim of the paper is to address where truth sits between reflections and reason in the glass surfaces of a mental health environment. To provide a framework the paper first covers a brief history of glass, engages with its technological properties, its language(s) of the inner and outer, its aesthetic effects in an architectural poetry of light, and the messages conveyed to vulnerable clients and careful clinicians. Then, using a detailed case study of a purpose built mental health ward in Australia, we explore how glass engenders visibility, security, surveillance and power, concluding with recommendations for future builds.