Kagan Goh

Kagan Goh is a Vancouver-based Chinese Canadian multidisciplinary artist whose work spans memoir, poetry, playwriting, filmmaking, and mental health advocacy. Diagnosed with bipolar disorder at age twenty-three in 1993, he discovered the transformative power of the written word as a path to understanding and healing. What began as self-therapy evolved into a powerful artistic voice that has made him a prominent figure in Vancouver’s spoken-word scene, where peers affectionately call him “the bipolar poet laureate.” Through spoken-word performances, theatrical work, and published writing, he delves fearlessly into themes of mental illness, recovery, and self-acceptance, advocating for the validation of all emotional experiences as essential phases of the healing journey. His mission: to raise awareness of mental health issues and dismantle the stigma surrounding mental illness. His published works include Who Let in the Sky? (Select Books, 2012), a poetic memoir exploring his relationship with his father, and Surviving Samsara (Caitlin Press, 2021), which chronicles his journey with bipolar disorder and was shortlisted for the 2022 Singapore Literature Prize in creative nonfiction. Currently, Kagan is adapting Surviving Samsara into A Delicate Imbalance, a dramatic episodic television series that continues his commitment to breaking the silence around mental illness through powerful storytelling.