ARTFEED — Contemporary Art Intelligence

Domenico Mangano's Film on Mental Illness Screens at GNAM Rome

exhibition · 2026-05-04

Domenico Mangano's film 'Birds Singing, Sandy Ground' (2014) explores mental illness through the lens of anti-psychiatry and Basaglian Democratic Psychiatry. Shot in the De Wissel community in the Frisian woods of the northern Netherlands, the film portrays a village for people with multiple handicaps and psychiatric disabilities. The work is the first in a trilogy dedicated to mental illness, adopting a revolutionary perspective that challenges traditional psychiatry. The film was screened at the Galleria d'Arte Moderna (GNAM) in Rome on April 18-19, 2015, with a talk and projection on April 18 at 11 AM, and additional screenings at 2 PM and 6 PM on the same day, and from 11 AM to 4 PM on April 19. The event was held at GNAM's location at Viale delle Belle Arti 131, Rome.

Key facts

  • Domenico Mangano directed 'Birds Singing, Sandy Ground' in 2014.
  • The film is set in the De Wissel community in the Frisian woods of the northern Netherlands.
  • De Wissel houses people with multiple handicaps and psychiatric disabilities.
  • The film adopts an anti-psychiatry and Basaglian Democratic Psychiatry perspective.
  • It is the first film in a trilogy about mental illness.
  • The film was screened at GNAM (Galleria d'Arte Moderna) in Rome.
  • Screenings took place on April 18 and 19, 2015.
  • A talk and projection occurred on April 18 at 11 AM.
  • Additional screenings on April 18 at 2 PM and 6 PM.
  • On April 19, screenings ran from 11 AM to 4 PM.
  • GNAM is located at Viale delle Belle Arti 131, Rome.

Entities

Artists

  • Domenico Mangano

Institutions

  • Galleria d'Arte Moderna (GNAM)
  • Artribune

Locations

  • Frisia
  • Paesi Bassi
  • Rome
  • Viale delle Belle Arti 131

Sources