Commissioned by registered charity Mortal and Strong , I produced five portraits for their health awareness campaign. Scars of Gold The Event is a National campaign and art exhibition sharing the Voices of 100 people with lived experience of life changing/incurable conditions. It consists of 100 photograohy portraits and 100 artist interpretations of the voices stories. Along side those there is the Mortal and strong podcast where the full stories and interviews can be found. The photography campaign is inspired by the Japenese practice of kintsugi where pottery and art is repaired using liquid gold, celebrating imperfections and finding hope and purpose once again.
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The photography campaign and artist interpretations were available to view at the Scars Of Gold exhibition at The Sidings, Waterloo, from 10th to 17th May 2025.
After speaking with my five voices I have created a visual description of the complex physical, and mental, effects of living with multiple chronic health conditions. Taking inspiration from Edward Hoppers' depictions of women in solitude, I hope to contradict his idea of helplessness or the unsettling nature of women unchaperoned. The women I present are in moments of reflection and peace, between their ongoing daily health battles.
Maria first had primary breast cancer, which responded well to treatment. Maria was later found to have lung cancer, which had already spread beyond the pleura of the lungs during the surgery, and so was Stage 4 (NSCLC). Maria talks about such important social stigmas that need addressing; having been asked so many times within healthcare and society whether she 'was a smoker', suggesting an element of blame.
Maria was confirmed to have an underlying genetic abnormality, which put her at greater risk of lung cancer, which also meant she was able to have a more targeted drug therapy.
Maria's safe place to take time out for reflection is in the bath, where she finds peace, especially with the company of her beloved doggy Norman.
You can hear her full story here:
https://open.spotify.com/episode/1Bb6GdU8OGzA4nLuZgu9nf?si=eNgCIqM9SRWVNlCdtBU6pA
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After several years of abdominal pains and misdiagnosis throughout her teens & 20’s, Charlotte was told she had scarring on her fallopian tube and was unlikely to conceive.
Against those odds she became pregnant at 29, which was a welcome surprise. However, during her 6 week pregnancy scan, a mass was found on her ovary. By the 32 week scan the mass had doubled in size & needed surgically removing along with her right fallopian tube & ovary.
Results confirmed the mass was borderline, so Charlotte could continue her pregnancy & would need a CT scan 6 weeks after the birth of her baby.
Following the birth of a healthy baby girl, charlotte had a CT scan which showed further spread to the liver, stomach, left ovary & omentum so she needed an urgent total hysterectomy. During the operation it was discovered that her appendix was abnormal and was removed.
This led to her diagnosis of Pseudomyxoma peritonei (PMP) which is incredibly rare.
Despite the enormous struggles, she has found strength in being a mother and a nurse, as well as in God. She has developed a range of scented candles that promote positivity and wellbeing, as her vision is to bring light to others. Charlotte has found great comfort in mindfulness practice and has recently pursued this passion now teaching it to others to help them benefit from it too.
Meera began having chest and back pain whilst pregnant and her symptoms were so vague they were initially dismissed as pregnancy related.
After giving birth and getting to the point where she couldn't lift her own child, scans eventually found a rare cancer manifesting in her sternum - solitary bony plasmocytoma. Meera shares the struggles of breast feeding and weaning whilst starting chemotherapy and radiotherapy. After eight years the cancer progressed to multiple myeloma. As Meera shares her journey, the parallels of navigating being a mum progress with this incredibly moving and inspiring story.
Even pre-diagnosis, Meera's philosophy to life was one of embracing it to the fullest, wanting to travel and see as many countries as her age.
Meera is overcoming a stem cell transplant through her desire and determination to watch her, now teenage, son grow up.
The painting is taken from a trip to Brighton in which Meera was having a moment of calm during a break in treatment.
Sharing her very complex journey with EDS, POTS, MCAS and Breast Cancer. It took Sarah over 15 years to finally get her diagnosis of Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (EDS), which is known as a 'zebra disease'.
The term zebra disease refers to the fact doctors in medical school are taught to 'think horses when they hear hooves, not zebras'.
This means people with rarer conditions are taking much longer to get a diagnosis.
When Sarah was further diagnosed with breast cancer, her treatment became complicated because of her underlying conditions and an episode of Steven Johnson Syndrome saw her in HDU. Sarah also talks about having a newer form of breast reconstruction surgery, the Goldilock mastectomy procedure.
Nikki recently passed the 5 year mark since being diagnosed with primary grade 3, stage 1, triple negative breast cancer. After treatment she was told there was a less than 10% chance of recurrence. She was due to have a full body scan, but doctors changed their mind and it wasnt questioned, unknown to her that cancer can spread through the blood stream. Less than a year later Nikki suffered stroke symptoms and was diagnosed with secondary cancer with brain metastasis.
Nikki wants to spread the message to advocate for yourselves - if it doesn't feel right then question it and get a second opinion.
Since her dianosis she has gone through a metamorphosis, spreading her wings in ways she never thought possible before. Her achievements include having a number one single with the check and change choir, campaigning for UK availability for ENHERTU on the NHS, numerous tv appearances and most recently meeting the king!
Nikki says that worrying is like carrying around an umbrella and waiting for it to rain.