mental illness
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The Church of Strangelove Collection #1
It might surprise you that these photographs were taken on a person’s wedding day. The marriage was only recognised by the Church of Strangelove. The rest of society damned these weddings as ‘perverted nonsense’ and ostracised the human bride or groom forever. The truth is that while some of the marriages were the result of…
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Asylum Artwork by Peter Trout Collection #3
Today we return to the fascinating artwork of Peter Trout. We have asked one of our Victorian art specialists to discuss these images further. This is what she had to say: “We know that Mr Trout was a prominent illustrator of medical books. He also had an impressive background in classical art which he studied…
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The Gothic Artwork of Vincent Pugh Collection #1
Today we introduce you to the photographer and artist Vincent Pugh who lived in Berkshire. Vincent was something of a recluse, rarely appearing in public other than to sell his art. The rest of the time he lived in a huge mansion with a breathtaking amount of land. He was also a hopeless romantic who…
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Asylum Artwork by Peter Trout Collection #2
You may have noticed that compared to the other asylum artworks, Mr Trout’s are fairly clean. There are no desperate scratches or manic scribbles; the subjects are at least fathomable in a literal sense. We believe that this is because Mr Trout had a background in illustration. It is possible that after the trauma he…
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Asylum Artwork by Peter Trout Collection #1
Today we begin archiving the artwork of Mr Peter Trout. Mr Trout had carved a living out of painting medical illustrations. He had graduated aged 16 at a technical college in Oxford where he excelled in the artform. He worked extensively with universities and book publishers across the world. After visiting the theatre with his…
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Domingo’s Haunted Puppet Show Collection #3
This is going to be the last puppet collection for a short while. We are presently sitting on top of a pile of new collections which we are hoping to put out over the next couple of weeks so you might see a slight increase in our output. We would like to say thank you…
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Asylum Artwork by Malachi Alexander Collection #1
Photograph #10 We don’t know much about Malachi Alexander except for what’s in the public records which isn’t very much. He was forced into the Horsehay Lunatic Asylum in Warwickshire as a danger to all. He was 22 years old and tragically committed suicide not long after a failed escape attempt a couple of months…
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Asylum Artwork by Noah Tar Collection #3
You may remember that back in June we looked at the tragic circumstances surrounding Noah Tar’s death. The ruling was suicide which was patently absurd. However, short of getting permission to dig up his remains to carry out a forensic investigation, we can’t officially prove the real cause of his death. Out of respect for…
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Asylum Artwork by Noah Tar Collection #2
Today we present to you more artwork by Noah Tar. We find them to be equally disturbing and beautiful. The complexity is alluring. I have personally stared at photograph #10 for hours, trying to work out the relationship between the circles and symbols. And then there’s those mysterious scribbles… I can’t help but think that…
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Asylum Artwork by Noah Tar Collection #1
Despite reforms in the first part of the 19th century, mental health treatment during the Victorian years could still be a gruelling experience depending on where a patient ended up. Like poverty, it was largely seen as a moral failing rather than a serious illness. Some treatment was nothing short of barbaric. Nobody knew this…
Welcome to the Victorian Underground Project 