The visitor: Het Dolhuys (2/3)

Making the most of the unexpectedly sunny weather, we enjoyed a long walk through the surrounding gardens, to het Dolhuys (the madhouse) museum. With the relatively low entry cost of only 7 euros for students, we had no idea just how excellent the museum would be. I was already impressed with the concept for the museum: provoking thoughts about the line between sanity and insanity, and I was further impressed by the role of the museum in attempting to path the way to opening up discussions about mental health. Personal and professional experiences mean that mental health is a topic which is especially close to me, and so museums like het Dolhuys make me very excited!

gardens

entrance

museum van de geest

The entrance hall to the museum began with an introduction to mentality, and that it is an topic that encompasses everybody. The idea that as a social group, whenever we meet somebody we try to understand their story with "just one look" at their outer appearance, but that judging the internal situation of a person ("is he/she normal?") in this way is impossible.

de maakbare mens

(ab)normal

The idea of the internal climate mismatching external was further explored through rooms showcasing personal belongings of people suffering a variety of psychological complains, alongside recordings of them telling their stories. Dissociative disorder, schizophrenia, and manic depression were all discussed from the touching view point of personal and intimate experience.

cabinet of deities belonging to a man who believed he was a god himself

The museum itself being set in an old psychiatric institute gave the opportunity to display some of the original purposes of the rooms. Perhaps the most chilling of these, and the most controversial, were the isolation chambers. Initially designed to separate the 'dangerously insane' from others in order to allow them time alone to reflect on their condition, scientific studies have since proven the effect of these chambers to be the polar opposite. People sentenced to these chambers reported that they began to feel insane after spending extended periods of time inside them, even if they previously felt normal and happy within themselves. Naturally taking the opportunity to "come in and close the door behind you" to try to experience this, it is easy to understand how the effects of these chambers could have been so drastically different from what was desired.

come in and close the door behind you

 An important question raised by the largest central halls was that there are some forms of socially acceptable (and often anticipated) 'insanity'. Creative people, such as artists or philosophers, often exhibit behaviour and express thoughts that would be considered abnormal if seen in others, it is only their social position which makes it acceptable. Furthermore it is suggested that even if those behaviours were to be categorised as deviating from the norm, if they are not negatively impacting the individual in anyway, is it necessary to do something about it?

creatives

artwork of a modern psychiatric patient

artwork of accumulated 'rubbish'

The rooms went on to demonstrate the many stages of understanding of mental health, beginning in the times when leeches were used as treatments to restore balance to the 4 humors, through exorcism of the devil, physical understanding of neurotransmitters, and finally to the concept of psychoanalysis and therapy. In addition to being historically interesting, I enjoyed the focus of these rooms being that mental illnesses are in fact illnesses requiring treatment, and are not simply a matter of "just trying to be happier".

4 humors and leech therapy

video of deep brain stimulation

history hallway

There was also the opportunity to view the personal collections of psychiatric case histories collected by the employees of the institute, displayed as an original library with lots of interesting and unique things to read about and look at.

personal collections

employees and their patients

central courtyard of the museum

provocative words and phrases about mental health

The 'care room' collection showcased implements used in previous treatments throughout the building's history and from earlier - interesting and terrifying in equal measure.

zorgzaal

psychiatric media

The final rooms of the museum focused on the modern day culture around mental health, and self image in particular. With lots of information about what it is like to live with mental illness at the present time, interactive exhibits, and thought provoking art installations, it was the perfect way to end the display, leaving the visitor with thoughts to carry on back out into regular life.

"be the master and designer of yourself"

self portrait created using eye tracking technology

post-it not experiment

opportunity to leave a note of your final thoughts of the museum

After several hours of reading about and discussing society, culture, mental health, personal experiences, and generally intense things, it was undeniably time for pizza and a couple of beers at our favourite place!

new favourite beer: ongelovige Thomas

old and new friends

pizza queen

finally enjoying a seat on the raised sofas

Another amazing day in Haarlem concluded in what felt like no time at all, it was once again time to relax with a cozy night at the fire place before the impending stress of the following day...tot dan!

Freddy Krueger socks