Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Swedish court fines art student for faking mental illness for project

From The Canadian Press:

STOCKHOLM, Sweden — A Swedish art student has been fined 2,500 kronor ($353) for faking mental illness for an art project.

The Stockholm district court on Monday convicted 35-year-old Anna Odell of violent resistance and dishonest conduct, but acquitted her of charges of raising a false alarm.

The court said Odell resisted attempts by police and hospital staff to restrain her while acting suicidal on a bridge in Stockholm in January.

The artist has said she was re-enacting a real episode in her life in 1995 and wanted to highlight how patients are treated in Sweden's psychiatric wards.

The videotaped enactment has been harshly condemned by health authorities in Sweden and stirred debate about the legal boundaries of art.