Brightening cancer patients’ day with wall art
One of the walls at the Bank of Cyprus oncology centre has been transformed into a view of nature for the seventh year as part of its Wall Gallery platform.
The artwork was commissioned as part of the non-governmental organisation Alternative Brains Rule’s goal of “bringing science and art closer together”, while they also say the artwork “offers an outlet” to cancer patients and healthcare staff alike at the centre.
The work is titled “Immersed in Athalassa” and was painted by Serbian artist Milenko Stevanovic.
“It’s a vista in the morning, an autumn day, when the sun beams through the leaves and shines on the ground in patches,” he said.
“The style of the Wall Gallery allowed me to experiment with elongated forms while at the same time showing the trail and the lake. The light flows through the scene and connects it,” he added.
He said he had drawn inspiration from nature, and that in creating the work, he had aimed to “show a perspective which is both familiar and easy on the eye”.
The painting, he said, “consists of several small observations and decisions which work with one another to bring out a single vision” rather than a single snapshot of a moment, like if one took a photograph.
He explained, “if you paint nature directly, it makes it impossible to hold onto a single moment like we would be able to do with a camera, so I think that working in this way, where the scenery constantly shifts in various discrete ways, we get a result which is more personal and closer to the human perception.”
Asked about the impact he hopes his work will have on cancer patients, he said, “I knew the painting would be visible from the rooms in the oncology centre, and that guided my decision about the choice of motif and how to approach the subject.”
I hope my painting creates a positive experience and serves as a vista from the rooms’ windows,” he added.
In this regard, he said he believes the Wall Gallery project has “brought positive vibes to the building” in the seven years of its existence, “converting a white and cold wall into a scene, a pleasant vista which makes onlookers happy”.
He added that he hopes his painting can have a positive impact on patients, and that “if it makes the environment a little more pleasant, then that’s a success.”