Fountain House Gallery – the premier venue in New York City representing artists living with mental illness – announces the fourth annual Compulsive genius: new work from Fountain House studio artists, a current exhibition that will remain on view through July 15, 2026. Compulsive Genius is curated by Austin Losada.

“It was a privilege to engage with each artist and think about their work together,” said Losada, a scholar and curator of American art and material culture with a specialty in the history of photography from its invention to the present day. “For some, the residency provided the space to explore new material and thematic directions; for others, it offered a chance to further refine longstanding aesthetic concerns. Regardless of their path, the works reveal a commitment to artmaking that is uniquely personal yet remains in constant dialogue with Fountain House’s supportive and collaborative studio environment.”

Losada continued, “The strength of Compulsive genius is its lack of thematic boundaries. Consequently, the diversity of each resident’s expressive language introduces audiences to a wide range of formal and thematic inquiries. These span from commentary on events in popular culture and investigations into the physical decay of information to formal explorations of symmetry, reflections on childhood memory, and expressions of love, community, and self-worth. In this way, Compulsive Genius feels like a collection of the diverse realities that define the human experience.”

Each year, Fountain House Studio in Long Island City supports 15 to 25 artists through its residency program. Artists apply for a residency with creation of a specific project or body of work in mind. Selected residents are provided with a dedicated workspace and during this time, artists are expected to work a certain number of Studio hours, attend weekly critiques and hold regular consultations with the Studio Director.

The 2026 Compulsive genius artists are: Guiomar Giraldo-Baron, Roger Jones, Maxx Reith, Angela Rogers, Tom Schneider, Frankie Silva, Christopher Sybil, Alyson Vega, Vermillion, and Nelson Wong.

This program is funded, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the City Council, and by generous support from the Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund, the Lily Auchincloss Foundation, and the Renate, Hans and Maria Hofmann Trust.