Maggie’s and the art of healing

VENA Cork understands the value of art. When she was diagnosed with breast cancer and was undergoing treatment, the works adorning the walls of a Maggie’s Centre helped the author through some of the darker periods.

Her husband Richard, an art historian, also appreciates the centre’s philosophy on the healing powers of art. He believes the centre provided an essential haven away from hospital where patients could recover psychologically as they improved physically.

“One of the things behind the Maggie’s idea is that the well-being of the mind probably does affect the body much more than we suppose, and we divorce the two things at our peril,” he said.

“We went along for the radiotherapy treatment and there, just along the path from the main hospital block, was this extraordinary building that offered something completely different – something intimate, friendly and filled with light, colour and very nice people who immediately made you feel welcome.”

Richard, who is also an art critic, broadcaster and exhibition curator, now advises the Maggie’s cancer caring centres across the UK on how they can use art to make their own buildings even more conducive to patients’ well-being.

The art on the walls in the centre had helped contribute to the sense of well-being and helped people feel better, Richard believes. Now, after finishing her treatment, Vena is doing well. “I’m delighted to say, with fingers crossed, that it was a successful treatment,” Richard said.

He has written a book, The Healing Presence of Art, which comes out next year, and believes hospitals could benefit from more use of art.

“I think we have got a long way to go. A lot of hospitals are just very, very functional with lots of instructions to wash your hands and walk in certain directions,” he said. “So you have lots of arrows and signage and not enough of the other kind of thing.”

Scotland on Sunday and sister paper The Scotsman have also joined with Maggie’s for our Christmas campaign to help make sure as many people as possible benefit from the unique care and support they provide for thousands of cancer patients and their families.

Asked what he looks for when advising Maggie’s on the art they should use, Richard said: “I think I am informed by my own personal experience and what it means to be someone going along to a Maggie’s cancer centre. Vena was sent along to Charing Cross Hospital in Hammersmith in London. It was very soon after the Maggie’s centre had opened there [in April 2008]. It is a very beautiful building.

“It is very, very difficult as I discovered, and so did my wife much more than me, to go along to a hospital and start treatment for breast cancer, in her case radiotherapy, because hospitals are fine when it comes to treating the body but they are not really trained to treat the patient’s mind.

“So there is a gap. The mind is terribly important, but we don’t seem to know how much the mind affects the body. But the two are not that separate.” Richard said they were able to speak to staff and other patients and family members going through the same experience. “It is so different from sitting bolt upright in a large, impersonal hospital waiting room,” he said.

Kathryn Lamont, who is in charge of arts and culture at Maggie’s, said the aim of the art is to help create a comfortable and safe environment.

“We want people to come in and not just enjoy the architecture but also have something to look at and interact with, and create that feeling of safety for them,” she said.

“It’s about creating this relationship between the people and the building, putting them at ease and giving them the perception of a stronger self they can build on.”

Artist Callum Innes, who donated works to Scotland’s most recent centre to open, at Gartnavel in Glasgow, said: “It was nice to be asked to contribute to the centre. It is important to support organisations like that and work with them.”

Maggie’s has a collection of more than 200 paintings, sculptures and photographs. They include contemporary works from Sam Taylor-Wood, Antony Gormley and Grayson Perry, as well as a wide range of Scottish artists such as Will Maclean, William Crosbie and William Walls.

• How to Donate to Maggie’s Christmas Appeal

Maggie’s Cancer Centres are celebrating their 15th birthday. The first centre opened in Edinburgh in 1996 and there are now 15 beautifully designed centres either established or in development across the UK. From the Highlands to London, Maggie’s help thousands of people find clarity and calmness in the isolation of their cancer journey through a bespoke and specialised programme. Help celebrate their 15th year and support the care that helps thousands of Scots:

• Text: Donate a one-off gift of £1.50 by texting MAGG15 to 70070

• Phone: [phone] and quote Scotsman Christmas Appeal

• Online: visit www.maggiescentres.org/scotsmanappeal