Anxiety disorders are the most common form of mental illness in America, affecting more than 40 million people nationwide.
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) – defined by having uncontrollable, reoccurring thoughts, behaviors and compulsions – affects some 2.2 million people in the US today, and is one of the most commonly experienced mental illnesses in the country after both depression and PTSD.
In her latest series, Slovenian cinemagraph artist Petra Švajger tackles the biting topic through a sequence of telling, true-to-life GIFs.
(GIF: Petra Švajger)
(GIF: Petra Švajger)
Staged against all-white surfaces and backdrops, Švajger’s series illustrates the common physical representations of OCD. Rigorous hand-washing, obsessive counting and compulsive organizing are all displayed in the newly unveiled series.
Švajger, who began creating her database of GIFs back in 2011, has used anxiety disorders as her muse before.
In 2015, the artist used four of her own phobias – Thalassophobia, fear of the sea; Nyctophobia, fear of the dark; etc. – to create a series of self-portrait-infused GIFs that would reflect on her psyche. In 2016, she debuted a series of animated GIFs representing the various realities of sleep disorders which she is no stranger to as well.
(GIF: Petra Švajger)
Continuing her journey in examining disorders of the mind, Švajger leaves us with her latest sequence of relatable and sense tickling GIFs that further give voice to our inner anxieties and occasionally messy minds. Enjoy the new series below:
(GIF: Petra Švajger)
(GIF: Petra Švajger)
(GIF: Petra Švajger)
Read More – Shia LaBeouf’s Latest Exhibition Is A 4-Year-Long, Anti-Trump Live Stream