‘Art was his lifeline’: how schizophrenic Hong Kong artist Wesley Tongson used creativity to deal with his condition, and how art therapy can help you
- Wesley Tongson discovered art at 17 and found the creative process soothing – his artworks have since featured in solo shows around the world
- Art is important for mental health and helps people connect with their emotions in a way that’s deeper than simply through language, one expert says
When the late Hong Kong artist Wesley Tongson was 15, he persuaded his parents to send him to Vancouver Island, off Canada’s Pacific Coast, to attend boarding school.
About three months later, he disappeared into some nearby woods overnight because he thought that someone was after him.
His parents flew to Canada and brought him home, where he was diagnosed with schizophrenia. It was 1973, and his family didn’t know what to do apart from following doctors’ instructions and giving him prescribed medication with serious side effects.
And then he discovered art. At 17, Tongson started practising Chinese ink painting and went on to become a prolific painter known for luminescent abstract works and dramatic landscapes painted using his fingers and nails.
Also known by his Cantonese name Tong Ka-wai, Tongson spent years working in obscurity and died at home in 2012 of unknown causes.
