Q&A with Lucy Cade: Art, motherhood, and postpartum psychosis
A conversation between artist Lucy Cade and Jenny Stevenson, APP’s National Peer Support Coordinator (online services). Lucy is a painter and educator. She has recently completed the Turps Offsite Studio Programme. She achieved an MA Fine Art at City & Guilds of London Art School in 2023.
Lucy Cade’s artworks were featured in a mixed media exhibition at Waterside Arts, Manchester (18 January - 22 February 2025). This was alongside the theatre performance ‘Who Is Your Mummy and Where Did She Go?’ by Company Four, with support from Action on Postpartum Psychosis.
The theatre show and exhibition explored stories of mothers who have lived experience of this still stigmatised mental illness and shed light on the work of those who seek to raise awareness and encourage more open conversations about maternal mental health.
Jenny: Your artwork is incredibly powerful. Could you tell us a little about what inspired you to create them?
Lucy: All the works in the show at Waterside come from a place of personal lived experience of altered states of consciousness such as psychosis. They also consider others’ reactions to these altered states - which for postpartum psychosis sufferers are luckily temporary and treatable. In my paintings, I engage with Surrealism and its link to the history of psychoanalysis. The psychotic experiences I have had, I think, could come from anyone's dreams - we all dream at some point, and sometimes these dreams are terrifying, so hopefully most people can relate to the paintings on that level. Some of the paintings relate to my experience of medical professionals and how, because of the nature of medicine, there is a lack of empathy or understanding of the whole person sometimes. I believe art and artmaking can address these ‘blind spots’. Throughout my episodes in hospital, I kept notebooks and sketchbooks near me, which were not always viewed favourably by my caregivers. However, I am glad I kept them because it now means I can share my experiences.
Jenny: What does it mean to you to have your work displayed in this exhibition?
Lucy: I was so excited when I heard about the open call being put out by Company Four MCR and APP. When I first started to make work about postpartum psychosis back in 2021, thanks to an Arts Council grant, I wished that such an opportunity and context would come up for showing the work. I am honoured to be involved and have works in the show that reflect the development of my postpartum psychosis paintings over the last four years.
Jenny: What role do you think creativity plays in healing and recovery from postpartum psychosis?
Lucy: Creativity definitely helps recovery - I can vouch for that. Whilst processing experiences through art can be painful and seeing things visualised still makes me feel some anguish, the externalisation and validation from others is powerful and necessary. Whatever art form this can happen through, it is worth exploring as a tool of recovery - poetry, music, art, theatre. And as they say, an experience shared is an experience halved - so that it doesn't overwhelm.
Jenny: If someone struggling with postpartum psychosis were to see your artwork today, what would you want them to take from it?Lucy: Something that helps them externalise what they've gone through and a realisation that there is a kind of beauty in it, and they're not alone. I've already had a few conversations with women who have been affected by the work, which is great.
Jenny: Thank you so much for sharing your experience and your work. It’s inspiring and will mean so much to so many people.
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Follow Lucy Cade-Stewart on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lucycadeartist/
Thank you to everyone who submitted their artwork for the exhibition.
If you have been affected by this post, need any support, or want to meet others affected by postpartum psychosis, please get in touch here.