Fiona Tan Curates 'Monomania' at Rijksmuseum, Exploring 19th-Century Psychiatry Through Art

Fiona Tan has made history by curating 'Monomania' at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, becoming the institution's first artist to organize a significant exhibition. This showcase explored the intersection of art and science in representing human emotions and psychological disorders, particularly highlighting advancements in 19th-century psychiatry. The exhibition included more than 250 pieces, such as paintings, prints, decorative arts, photography, and historical artifacts from the Rijksmuseum, along with contributions from other institutions and Tan's own sketches, a photo collage, and two video installations. The title alludes to an antiquated clinical term and Théodore Géricault's series Les Monomanes, featuring his Portrait of a Kleptomaniac (c. 1820–24) on loan from the Museum of Fine Arts, Ghent, renowned for its vivid realism in depicting psychological illness. With Indonesian, Chinese, and Australian roots, Tan, a resident of Amsterdam since the 1980s, raised questions about how art can reveal internal mental states, encouraging reflections on the influence of these representations on mental health perceptions.