Mallory Gee

Professor Caruso
UWRT 1103
8 November 2016
For stage one of my inquiry path I focused more closely on the science and how the brain
is affected by addiction. I also looked into whether or not a person could actually be born with
addiction or if it was just the environment around them that caused it in their lives. I noticed in
my research that several of the sources went around the dirty, personal details that surround
addiction. The details that may come across as harsh or disgusting to the general public. Many
sources I looked at failed to talk about the minds and feelings behind each addict. This part that
is typically hidden from the media and public is the part about addiction that I have chosen to
raise awareness about immediately.
I have chosen to create an art piece that the public can not only touch and interact with
but they can read personal stories from four different types of addicts. The types of addictions
demonstrated in this piece were alcohol, drugs, smoking, and food. I have painted a series of
four paintings, each of them with a silhouette of an addict. The audience cannot see the
expression or face of the addict in the paintings. I chose to paint them this way so the audience
will be drawn in to read and discover the stories behind the addicts on the backs of each canvas.
Once they read, they will know four new personal addiction stories and will have more
knowledge on how severe addiction really is. My main goal is for the audience to not only
realize what it is like, personally, for an addict but how ashamed and broken the addict feels
about their problem with addiction. One may not be able to tell an addict just by looking at a

person, but reading life details from one will open the eyes of each audience member who reads
these stories.
Addiction is a horrible curse that so many people feel ashamed to admit that they struggle
with every day. Social media is partially to blame for this and encourages individuals to hide
their imperfections. Jon Negroni, a copywriter from California, specializes in analyzing the
hidden meanings behind films and other discussion topics. One of his articles in particular talks
about social media sites and how they relate with depression. He says, Specifically, people
(skewing younger) are misusing the social media tools given to them and creating false
impressions of themselves that are fueling their own insecurities, as well as the insecurities of
their peers (Negroni,). Addicts feel the need to hide their problem which is far from recovery. In
fact, according to Phases of Recovery a drug and rehab center of Asia, the key to recovery
from an addiction, is for the addict to admit their troubles and move on to the point of viewing
the truth about their circumstances (Phases of Recovery). Unless an addict seeks help and
shares their story, they cannot fight the war of addiction on their own. I want the public to feel
called to help them fight their addictions. I also want addicts to feel more comfortable sharing
their personal stories after reading others that they can relate to. A buildup of emotions and
depression is not healthy and only leads to an even stronger addiction. David Sac, M.D a board
certified addiction psychiatrist, adds that an addict cannot heal unless they uncover the addiction
at hand (Sac). In the stories on my piece, there are situation examples where the addict is unable
to share their nightmare of addiction with others. While their secrets should not be ignored,
addicts are still very dishonest and afraid of sharing their hidden addiction. To start taking steps
toward recovery, the first step is to share the truth about the problem (Sac).

My intended audience for this interactive piece is two groups of people. The first group I
wish to reach is those that do not deal with addiction in their daily lives. It is for those that know
of addiction but may not be that aware of the major effects it has on so many people. This piece
including personal stories will raise awareness on the severity of addiction. The audience will not
learn the science and facts about addiction. Instead, they will be taken to a more personal level
with real life stories that appeal to their emotions. The second audience group I wish to reach are
those individuals that struggle with addiction. Being able to interact and read other addicts
personal thoughts, feelings, and stories will show them that they are not alone in their struggle.
These private stories will allow them to feel comfortable opening up to their friends and family
and will hopefully encourage them to seek the help they need. I do not struggle with addiction
and am not aware of even half the battles that these addicts fight on a daily basis. Dr. Robert
Swift, who is an addiction psychiatrist and professor at Brown University in Providence, R.I, has
a much better incite to the lives of these people. Ive known people to hide alcohol under ceiling
tiles, in hollowed-out parts of mattresses, behind books on bookshelves, says Swift (Hiding a
Habit: Alcoholics Often Cover Problem.). In my research, I have noticed that a number of
addicts are ashamed of their addiction. If addicts will go to this extreme to hide their addiction,
then there must be a greater awareness for these types of events are happening in society.
The location I have chosen for this piece is the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art located
in Charlotte, North Carolina. In the museums mission statement, it is to inspire, inform and
enhance cultural and intellectual life. This museum is a new and growing museum which will
be seen by several people as people visit this museum. For my genre piece, the atmosphere
around it needs to be all about learning. The Bechtler Museum is in a very inspiring location for

many. I chose this museum because the public will visit it wanting to learn something new and
they will find my piece to read and look at.
By sharing personal stories from addicts I will fight social stigma. Social stigma is the
extreme disapproval of, or discontent with, a person on the grounds of characteristics that
distinguish them from other members of a society (Dutoit). Stigma is one of the meanest and
most difficult aspects of addiction which it makes it harder for individuals and families to deal
with their problems and get the help they need says David L. Rosenbloom, Ph.D.
(Rosenbloom). He also goes on to mention how strong of an impact stigma has on those with
addiction. Society imposes stigma and its damage on addicts and their families because many of
us still believe that addiction is a character flaw of weakness that probably cant be cured
(Rosenbloom). For those family members and close friends of addicts, this piece will show them
that their son, daughter, mother, or father, is not the only human being that has been taken over
by addiction. This stigma is so strong it even bypasses scientific evidence for many addicts to
where they want to hide their addiction and not try and recover from it (Rosenbloom). When the
audience reads the stories, the severity of addiction will be on their minds. My hope is that they
will start talking about addiction. The more society talks about addiction, the more likely it is for
addicts to feel comfortable speaking out about their own addictions.
Being able to interact with this genre piece will give the audience a way to physically
hold and connect with the stories they read. Each canvas is connected to the black display board
with Velcro that the audience can pull off and flip over to read the stories on the back. I chose to
make this piece interactive because more people will be able to connect to the topic if they
physically can interact with it. To be able to touch and hold it in their hands, the audience can
connect to it much easier. There will be some instruction on my piece for the audience as well for

those that may not know to take out the canvas and read the back. To make this clear, I wrote at
the top left of the board Peel off & Read. My reasoning for painting the background of each
silhouette a different color is because each addiction is different. A food addiction is different
than a drug addiction just like an alcohol addiction is different than a smoking addiction. Within
each color, I chose to show a gradient of that color because each addict has a different level of
severity with their addiction.
Overall, certain parts of addiction receive more attention than others. As I previously
mentioned, several sites that I used for research in my Inquiry Path focused more on the
scientific reasoning for a person having an addiction, and less on the feelings, emotions, and
lives of the addicts themselves. There needs to be more awareness of not just for the addict, but
for what non addicts can do to help those with addiction. Reading through these stories will
allow other addicts to find the strength and courage to let their voices be heard.

New Works Cited

Dutoit, Yann Picand Dominique. "Social Stigma.: Definition of and Synonyms of (English).
N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Nov. 2016.
"Hiding a Habit: Alcoholics Often Cover Problem." Msnbc.com. N.p., 07 Aug. 2009. Web. 07
Nov. 2016.
Negroni, Jon. "Social Media Is Making Us More Insecure." Jon Negroni. N.p., 24 May 2013.
Web. 07 Nov. 2016.
Rosenbloom, David L., Ph.D. "Coping with the Stigma of Addiction." HBO: Addiction: Stigma
& Discrimination:. Home Box Office, n.d. Web. 07 Nov. 2016.
Sac, David, M.D. "7 Honest Reasons Why Addicts Lie." Addiction Recovery. Psych Central, 9
June 2015. Web. 5 Nov. 2016.
Old Works Cited
"Phases of Recovery." Alcohol Rehab. Drug and Rehab Asia, 2008. Web. 27 Sept. 2016.