Kath McCann
Armed with the mindset to say ‘yes’ to new opportunities, a commitment to living authentically, a desire to create because it supports her wellbeing and a passion for encouraging others to do the same - Kath McCann lives by the motto, “you don’t have to be good at something for it to be good for you.”
Kath began her creative journey at a young age, far more interested in building houses for Barbies than playing with them. Being creative and constructive was always something Kath held in high regard, and she knew that a career of creativity was what she wanted to pursue.
Kath’s childhood dreams of creating were stifled by the impact of living with persistent anxiety and she recalls her first anxiety attack presenting itself at age 12 and a major depressive episode in her late teens forming the beginning of a continued struggle with depression until well into her mid-thirties.
“Even as someone who has had horrendous depression, it’s hard now to think about how that felt and what that was like – it’s not a general feeling of being down, I would describe it as a big black hole.”
“I can think of a time when just after we had our youngest daughter, I was going to do what should seemingly be a simple task like washing up, but I just couldn’t do it. I had to ignore the washing up pile and just get one item at a time and wash it to make it manageable.”
Determination and resilience have served Kath well and afforded her a professional 34-year career as an educator both in the classroom and in leadership roles, before she made the decision to scale back her formal work commitments and focus on her artistic practice.
A mature ADHD diagnosis has helped Kath gain valuable insight into understanding and making sense of the way she views the world. “It’s not because I’m inherently broken, it’s just the way I see things. There is so much misunderstanding and shame surrounding mental ill-health and neurodivergence and because it can’t be seen assumptions are made and they aren’t necessarily accurate.”
Doodling in university notebooks and during meetings became a coping mechanism, evolving into detailed pen drawings and paintings that have helped define her artistic style today.
Encouraged by her daughters, Kath ventured onto Instagram, where she documents her artistic journey and connects with a supportive community. Creating art became her sanctuary, fostering mindfulness and leading her to establish Kath.Artique (cathartic), which focuses on neuro-doodling to promote mindful artistic practices.
Kath McCann, You Don't Bring Me Flowers exhibited as part of the 2023 Recovered Futures exhibition
Kath describes creating as her ‘calm space’ where anxiety makes way for mindfulness, which has paved the way for a recent new teaching venture combining her former love of education with her art practice.
“I have surprised myself by just intuitively knowing what to say to participants who might be struggling with the process, allowing them to be present and acknowledge how they are feeling.”
“The nature of living with mental health is it’s with you for life, it’s about putting things in place to assist with the management of something that is invisible to others. People are often very accommodating of those with visible lifelong disabilities – once you have experienced anxiety and depression you are never going to be the same person.”
“I have found art can support my wellbeing, either by viewing it or creating it – I make it a priority to fulfil my desire to create because that’s where I feel the most ‘me’ and I hope to share that skill with others so they can find the calm in creation.”