Our Mission
The Ryan Licht Sang Bipolar Foundation is dedicated to fostering awareness, understanding and research for Early-Onset Bipolar Disorder. The Foundation is on a QUEST FOR THE TEST™ to find an empirical, biomarker test for Bipolar Disorder so that early detection and early intervention become a reality.
Ryan's Story
The Ryan Licht Sang Bipolar Foundation was founded in memory of Ryan Licht Sang who passed away at the age of 24. Ryan had Early-Onset Bipolar Disorder — a serious medical illness of the brain that manifests itself with recurring episodes of mania and depression. At the time of his death, he was in the most productive and promising phase of his life.
Two Important New Books on Bipolar Disorder, Creativity and Hope
Fires in the Dark by Kay Redfield Jamison is a beautiful meditation on the quest and adventure of healing the mind, on the power of accompaniment, and the necessity for knowledge.
Your Brain on Art by Susan Magsamen and Ivy Ross is a portal into a new understanding about how the arts and aesthetics can help us transform traditional medicine, build healthier communities, and mend an aching planet.
Bipolar Awareness Ribbon
The Bipolar Awareness Ribbon is the symbol for The Ryan Licht Sang Bipolar Foundation. The black and white colors of the Bipolar Awareness Ribbon represent the opposite poles of depression and mania associated with Bipolar Disorder. The Ribbon was designed for the Foundation by Ryan's mother.
Butterfly Bipolar Awareness Pin
News from the National Institute of Mental Health
- Developing Tools for Measuring Mental Health Outcomes
- How the Brain Creates New Memories While Maintaining Old Ones
- Predictive Models Show Promise in Preventing Suicide
- Study Illuminates the Structural Features of Memory Formation at the Cellular and Subcellular Levels
- Study Illuminates the Genetic Architecture of Bipolar Disorder
INSIGHTS Art Competitions and Exhibitions
The Ryan Licht Sang Bipolar Foundation hosts a Juried Art Competition and Exhibition entitled INSIGHTS. The Exhibitions are designed to highlight the "creativity of artists with Bipolar Disorder" and the artworks in the Exhibitions were chosen by a jury of art collectors, gallerists and artists after a national competition.
The INSIGHTS II Juried Art Exhibition was held at the Zolla/Lieberman Gallery, Chicago, IL, from May 31-June 2, 2018.
The INSIGHTS III Juried Art Exhibition was held at the Zolla/Lieberman Gallery, Chicago, IL, from October 24-26, 2019.
The INSIGHTS IV Juried Art Exhibition, limited to Self-Portraits, was held after the pandemic at the Zolla/Lieberman Gallery, Chicago, IL, from October 21-24, 2021, and was held at the Surovek Gallery, Palm Beach, FL, from April 12-30, 2022.
The INSIGHTS V Juried Art Exhibition was held at the Zolla/Lieberman Gallery, Chicago, IL, from October 27-29, 2022, and will be held at the Surovek Gallery, Palm Beach, FL, from January 17-February 4, 2023.
The INSIGHTS VI Juried Art Competition opened on November 30, 2022, and will close on February 28, 2023. Submissions are limited to "What It Feels Like To Have Bipolar Disorder." The Submission period is now closed and selected artists have been notified.
The Foundation will present INSIGHTS VII, a Juried Retrospective drawn from its INSIGHTS II - INSIGHTS VI Collections in 2024/2025. Artists of the 20 artworks selected by the Jury plus 6 Honorable Mention artworks will receive a notification letter in September 2024, and will there after receive a Grant from the Foundation. This Retrospective Exhibition will at the Zolla/Lieberman Gallery, Chicago, IL, from October 24-26, 2024, and at the Surovek Gallery, Palm Beach, FL, from January 14 - February 1, 2025.
The INSIGHTS VIII Juried Art Competition submissions are off to the Jury. Notification of Grants will occur around the end of May 2025.
The Ryan Licht Sang Bipolar Foundation wishes to thank Juried Art Services, the leading art services company since 2003, for their support of the Foundation's mission and its INSIGHTS competitions.
Announcements
The INSIGHTS VIII Juried Art Competition submissions are off to the Jury. Notification of Grants will be made around the end of May 2025.
Congratulations to artist Kelly Mathews on becoming The Ryan Licht Sang Bipolar Foundation's first Artist-in-Residence. Her two-year appointment was announced on May 9, 2023 at the Foundation's Chicago Bipolar Medical Briefing Dinner in honor of the Luncheon Panelists and included the awarding of a special Grant to support her outstanding work as an artist and as an advocate in the Foundation's work to change the stigma surrounding Bipolar Disorder.
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Many thanks to our Community Partners, Jersey Mike's and Bartucci Beauty, and all of the wonderful supporters and participants for making The Ryan Licht Sang Bipolar Foundation's Community Fundraisers so successful!
The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline provides free and confidential emotional support to people in suicidal crisis or emotional distress 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, across the United States. The Lifeline is comprised of a national network of over 200 local crisis centers, combining custom local care and resources with national standards and best practices.