Few artists can rival Mary Barnes for the sheer honesty of experience conveyed in paintings she created while in the grips of psychosis. Her 'IT' series of paintings are a brutal depiction of severe mental illness, and some of the best visual examples of the pathos and terror of the experience.

In later life when her mental health recovered she began to exhibit her work and to give lectures on mental health, psychotherapy, and the importance of creativity in her recovery.

For psychologist Professor Victoria Tischler she's drawn to Mary’s work as it is more than an illustration of mental illness but also a story of the power of honesty to find truth, hope and salvation.