The Unbearable Lightness of Living, Narges Porsandekhial
The work consists of one thousand small, transparent capsules in a bowl, each less than an inch in length. Inside each capsule is a tightly folded piece of white paper. On each piece of paper, the handwritten word “bear” appears in graphite.
Title: The Unbearable Lightness of Living
Artist: Narges Porsandekhial
Date: 2022
Medium/Materials:
Dimensions: 1000 capsules, approx. 2.54 centimeters each
Form/Genre: Sculpture
Key Terms/Subject/Tags: Depression; Mental illness; Resilience; Pharmaceuticals
Artist Statement:
The Unbearable Lightness of Living (2022) was created during the early months of the Iranian uprising. The work consists of one thousand transparent capsules, each containing a small piece of paper on which Narges Porsandekhial has handwritten the verb “bear”. Multiplied and accumulated, the capsules evoke medication while holding a single, repeated act of endurance. The title draws inspiration from The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera, invoking the paradox of heaviness and lightness embedded in the struggle between living and merely being.
Porsandekhial’s practice engages lived experience as embodied knowledge. Living with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) since childhood, she has encountered the stigma surrounding psychiatric medication and the pressure to conceal vulnerability. She began using pharmaceutical capsules in her work as a response to this silence and prejudice. Using objects associated with care, relief, and regulation also carries cultural judgment and uneven access. In this piece, the capsule becomes both container and metaphor; it suggests treatment while holding not cure, but the labour of continuing to exist.
Created amid political upheaval and collective grief, the work connects personal survival with broader conditions of crisis. The repeated word bear speaks to the weight of enduring unbearable circumstances and to the quiet effort required to persist. By translating mental health experience into a simple, legible visual language, the work invites dialogue beyond clinical frameworks and challenges stigma as a social determinant of wellbeing.
Engaging Embodied States, Reclaiming the Patient Narrative, and Systems and Structures, the work bears witness to mental health stigma, the limits of care, and the forms of endurance that remain when relief is uncertain.
Cultural Context / Story Behind the Work:
Created during the early months of the Iranian uprising, this work responds to Porsandekhial’s lived experience with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) and anxiety, which she has experienced since she was eight years old. She has been on psychiatric medication for many years, and her depression is treatment-resistant. The work reflects the struggles of living with an invisible illness, Porsandekhial’s personal mental health challenges, and the broader social and political conditions of crisis and survival.
Rights for this Image:
This digital image is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0. You are free to share it for non-commercial purposes, as long as you credit the artist.
Learn More:
Instagram: @narges_porsande