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Rhys Bevan Jones is a Clinical Lecturer and Specialist Registrar in Psychiatry, and is involved in teaching and research at the Department of Psychological Medicine at Cardiff University.

He has a special interest in the relationship between psychiatry, multimedia and the visual world, and has explored this area at Central St Martins College of Art, and Kingston University, London - where he was awarded a First Class BA (Hons) in Illustration and Animation – while also studying for a MSc in Psychiatry at Cardiff University.

For the illustration degree, he wrote a thesis on how the mind has been illustrated throughout history, and investigated the ways in which people – including medical colleagues, friends and family members - visualise the mind. He created prints based on these ideas, including the one to the left entitled ‘Metaphors of the Mind’.

He has used some of the work and skills from these courses to produce multimedia presentations for undergraduate and postgraduate teaching in psychiatry at Cardiff University ,and for international medical conferences. For example, images and film can be used to demonstrate psychopathology, and this can help make teaching sessions more interactive and engaging.

As a result of student feedback, Rhys has developed pieces of work based on how some ‘see’ the mind and various mental disorders, such as the work shown on the left on depression.

Some the prints created have also been integrated into further educational work.

‘Depression’: images based on how people ‘see’ depression (2009)

Fortunately, some of his work has been commissioned for publication and chosen for exhibitions such as the official Arts Exhibitions of the National Eisteddfod and the annual Association of Illustrators exhibitions in London. The print shown below, entitled ‘Are you a Celt?’ is an example of his exhibited work, and draws from anatomical and Celtic imagery. The interest shown might suggest an appetite for the use of visuals to educate and increase awareness of mental health issues.

‘Are you a Celt?’ (2009)

Rhys would like to continue to explore the use of multimedia and imagery in psychiatry further, and to develop innovative work in the clinical and academic arenas and in public engagement work – so this might benefit patients, carers, medics and the general public. A scientific approach into evaluating the impact of this work might help move the debate beyond anecdote and opinion.