Tanya Leah Temkin (1950-2022) was a pioneering Berkeley, California-based artist, writer, and prominent psychiatric survivor activist whose work deeply influenced the anti-psychiatry, disability justice, and consumer/survivor/ex-patient (c/s/x) movements. Operating from the San Francisco Bay Area, she was closely aligned with radical mental health networks and community self-help research.
(Photo Credit: Facing Our Risk.org)
Contributions to Madness Network News & Movement Art
- Activist Art & Graphics: Temkin contributed striking illustrations, cover art, and graphics for Madness Network News and movement conferences—such as her artwork for the Eighth International Conference on Human Rights and Psychiatric Oppression held in Berkeley.
- Writing & Critical Analysis: As a writer for movement publications, she produced foundational critiques examining systemic abuses, including detailed analyses on the forced sterilization of people with psychiatric and mental disabilities as well as critiques of mainstream therapeutic models that ignored institutional oppression.
(Credit: Madness Network News.com logo)
Additional Information
Following her involvement with Madness Network News and radical mental health advocacy, Tanya Temkin pursued higher education, earning a Master of Public Health (MPH) and a Master of City Planning (MCP).
She transitioned into professional health research and community self-help studies, working as a Research Associate at Kaiser Permanente of Northern California in Oakland and contributing to the Center for Self-Help Research in Berkeley. In this capacity, she co-authored significant academic studies and clinical research publications evaluating consumer-operated service programs (COSPs), self-help agencies, organizational empowerment, and recovery outcomes for individuals with serious mental illnesses.
Sources: Madness Network News archives and academic records from the San Francisco Bay area.
Artwork
Examples of Tanya’s artwork, particularly cover art, can be found throughout the archives: https://madnessnetworknews.com/archives/
Video
Tanya’s eulogy can be seen here: https://youtu.be/4j3aPWjW9w4?si=moeFR85q3TcvvY_W