Artist Courtney Bae has turned personal stories of eating disorders and recovery into a new collection of portraits and landscapes designed to encourage greater understanding of the condition.
The project, titled Nourishing: Reflections of Resilience, was developed in partnership with the Somerset and Wessex Eating Disorders Association (SWEDA). The exhibition brought together people with lived experience of eating disorders, supporters and advocates, with Bae using their stories as the starting point for a series of expressive oil paintings.
The exhibition was held at Sworders' London Gallery from 1 to 11 September. According to Sworders, 20 per cent of the proceeds from works sold will be donated directly to SWEDA to support its counselling, guidance and outreach services.
A Personal Connection to Eating Disorders
For Bae, the project is closely connected to her own experience of supporting someone with an eating disorder.
In an account published by The Independent, Bae explained that she had spent more than two decades watching a loved one experience the condition. She described feeling unable to fully understand what was happening or how best to provide support.
That experience eventually led her to approach SWEDA about creating an artistic project that could examine the complexities of eating disorders while giving people with lived experience an opportunity to tell their stories through portraiture.
Bae has said that the process also changed the way she thinks and speaks about food, dieting and body image. Conversations with people involved in eating disorder support encouraged her to consider how everyday language around appearance and food can affect younger people.
Portraits Built Around Personal Stories
Rather than simply painting the physical appearance of her subjects, Bae spent time speaking with them before creating their portraits.
The artist said she wanted to understand each sitter's experiences, including when difficulties with food began and what their recovery journey had involved. The resulting collection includes 18 portraits and landscapes featuring people who have experienced eating disorders, people who supported loved ones and individuals working to improve awareness and treatment.
Among those featured is Hannah Christopher, whose portrait is titled 'Gently Noticing'. Bae described sitting for the painting as particularly significant because Christopher considered the experience part of her own recovery journey.
Comedian and mental health campaigner Dave Chawner is also represented in the collection through the portrait 'Remembering'. Chawner has previously spoken publicly about his experience of anorexia and the difficulties he faced before receiving a formal diagnosis.
Another sitter is Wera Hobhouse, whose daughter went through recovery from an eating disorder. Her experience reflects another aspect of the condition explored by the project: the emotional impact eating disorders can have on families and close relationships.
Nourishing: Reflections of Resilience
The Nourishing exhibition does not present eating disorders solely through illness. Instead, its stated focus is on recovery, resilience, vulnerability and the relationships surrounding those affected.
Sworders describes Bae's work as exploring the connection between trauma and resilience, while SWEDA says the series examines the complexities of eating disorders, recovery and human resilience.
For Bae, the conversations behind the paintings were just as important as the finished artworks. She said many of the people involved wanted to participate in order to encourage earlier recognition and intervention.
The project also highlights that eating disorders can affect different groups of people and are not limited to a particular gender or age. Chawner's story, for example, brought attention to the experiences of men with eating disorders and the difficulties some people may face in recognising that they need help.
Art as a Way of Opening Difficult Conversations
Courtney Bae's work provides a different way of approaching a subject that can often be hidden or difficult to discuss.
By giving people with lived experience a central role in the project, Nourishing: Reflections of Resilience connects visual art with personal testimony. The portraits allow individual experiences to be represented without reducing recovery to a single story or definition.
SWEDA said the project was intended to raise awareness and support its work with people affected by eating disorders. The charity has also highlighted the importance of approaching its community stories with care because some accounts may be difficult for people affected by eating or mental health problems to read.
Bae's collection ultimately presents recovery as something deeply personal, while recognising the wider impact an eating disorder can have on families, friendships and communities. Through portraiture, the artist has created a space where difficult experiences can be acknowledged alongside stories of growth and resilience.
