Self portrait nude on hospital chair 215cm x 200cm Fire extinguisher w/ acrylic, spray and oil. The ‘recovery approach’ has gained ground as an alternative paradigm to the biomedical model of mental health over recent years (REF). In the UK, for instance, ‘recovery’ is now accepted as a core tenet in mental health services, purportedly central to both inpatient and community service delivery (REF - nhs policy). Originating in service user activism and theory (Antony, 1993; Deegan, 1996), the recovery approach is strengths orientated, aiming to not eradicate ‘symptoms’ or distress, but instead to foster hope and sustain a meaningful life (Davidson). Recovery is therefore posited to be both deeply individual, unique to the context of meaning of each person’s life, and also collective, a holistic enterprise which extends beyond the traditional psychiatric and psychological focus on the individual mind and body. As Pat Deegan (1996) highlights, ‘recovery’ is thus both simple and revolutionary: “The concept of recovery is rooted in the simple yet profound realization that people who have been diagnosed with mental illness are human beings. Like a pebble tossed into the center of a still pool, this simple fact radiates in ever larger ripples until every corner of academic and applied mental health science and clinical practice are affected”