Side Effects May Include

Side Effects May Include is a photography-based installation, a “pill” bedroom which explores the disconnection between mental health challenges and medication, more specifically, polypharmacy.

After suffering with Bi-polar disorder, my sister, Sherilyn, took her life with a cocktail of prescribed pharmaceuticals. Following her death, I collected the years of spare medications from her home. The pills in this project belonged to her. Her suicide seemed unusual as her pill regiment was robust, and I speculated if her medications were responsible for her death. As I researched each medication a dark story unfolded; that of a one way passage.

The bedroom is a space of intimacy and comfort, in which I chose to tell her story. Carefully arranging the pills into patterns, I photographed a specific pattern for every surface in the room: wallpaper, quilt, upholstered chair, dresses, pillows, curtains and artwork. The viewer is invited inside for an immersive experience simulating a psychosomatic pull.