Yuyang Liu 2015 Winner

At Home with Mental Illness

In 2014 there were reportedly 16 million people in China living with severe mental illness. 80% of patients diagnosed did not receive sufficient or necessary treatment due to China’s flawed health care system. Most people who suffer from these illnesses are forced to live at home with their families or on their own. They are overlooked or often not recognized at all within society, they are invisible. This project aims to explore the unique relationship between the mentally ill, their families, and society at large.

I’ve been to several towns and villages in Guangdong Province which is the richest region in southern China and filmed some mental illness at home. I plan to visit more places in China and take photos of these families with mental illness. What I concern about is their relationship and love, and how they treat the illness and each other. And I’ll cooperate with Tencent News which has 2,500 million readers and some NGOs to spread the photo essay and help more families without sufficient health care of mental illness. What I want most is using my photos to promote society and make a better China.