Every picture tells a story Robin Osborne reviews a narrative art project where healthcare patients met TAFE students to go on a personal journey through sickness, healing and self-discovery. The dramatic image is surely an aerial view of landscape, perhaps an Aboriginal work characterised by the ‘helicopter’ view commonly seen in Central Desert paintings. The low hills, tinged red-pink by early morning or afternoon sun, are fringed by a body of dark water, the thick swirls of blue and red paint applied dramatically. Yet the painting’s title, The Silk Road, bears no relationship to Australia… or so it seems. Rather than looking externally for inspiration the artist, TAFE student Mark Alcock, gazed inside the body for inspiration, portraying the devastating impact of an auto-immune disease named Behçet’s Disease on a local man who had battled this condition for years. “P shared a tale of woe that began towards the end of 2017 and continues to this day,” writes Mark in the artist’s statement, or ‘Student’s Reflection’, that accompanies the work. “He tells me it is a condition discovered along the old Silk Road… [it has been] a medical odyssey that began with ulcers and later traversed numerous other issues over time [often from the secondary effects of treatments for the oropharyngeal ulcers]… rashes, oral thrush, sepsis, malnutrition, dehydration, joint aches and kidney issues. “My artwork looks at a physical manifestation of the condition (as ulcerated tissue) and works it into a landscape reflecting both the idea of the Silk Road and the patient’s tour of the Australian East Coast undertaken in search of medical help.”
“I woke up on Christmas Day with a mouth ulcer which multiplied... I get ulcers in my throat and lips. They are very painful and can appear Above: The Silk Road by Mark Alcock is not, despite appearances, an overnight. If severe, aerial view of landscape. I am kept awake drooling through the As Tracey Beck explains, the original night. My immune system is shot and my plan was to arrange face-to-face meetings skin is paper-thin from prolonged steroid between subjects and artists. Then use. I have had 50 hospital admissions COVID-19 came along. Arranging video in the last 3-4 years. My last admission conference calls was the next option, but was for sepsis and I have had multiple when that seemed impractical, one-hour pneumonias. It’s only cleared up once since phone calls were held, meaning the artists it all happened. had to undertake their work sight-unseen. “I was a fitter and turner by profession. Before, I did lots of outdoor activities like swimming and surfing. I enjoyed a healthy lifestyle previously. It has turned my life on its head. It’s hard on the kids and had a big impact on my relationship. At times, I felt disempowered and have felt institutionalised. It’s a painful mystery.” The show’s concept was to match ten former BDH in-patients with Diploma of Visual Arts students - one male, nine female - who would encourage them to share details of their lives and illnesses. Then the artists would create works representing the patients’ experiences of their journeys.
Portraits or visually identifiable pieces were not allowed for confidentiality reasons, although human figures are present in some of the works. Suggested questions to be asked of the patients included, “In your words can you tell me about your main illness or injury that led to your recent hospitalisation?,” “Can you describe how you felt when you were unwell? What symptoms did you experience?”, “What were your thoughts or feelings at the time?”, “Has your day to day living or quality of life been impacted?”, and “Do you have any advice you would like to share with anyone else who might be going through a similar experience?”
The patient had been receiving care in Ballina District Hospital (BDH) under the supervision of staff specialist Dr Tien K Khoo, co-curator of the exhibition ‘Unconditional Stories’ with Tracey Beck, a Diversional Therapist* with Northern NSW Local Health District, and TAFE Lismore Teacher of Visual Art, Steven Giese. “My life has been a ‘treadmill of misery’ Pictured (l-r) Visual Art teacher, Steven Giese, Diversional therapist Tracey Beck and Dr Tien K. Khoo. with an autoimmune disorder,” P says.
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