SAILS AND SEABirds
Organ donation Wall ARTWORK FOR UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL SOUTHAMPTON
Southampton is famous for the biggest water-based boat show in Europe, taking part within the Solent’s sheltered natural harbours and inshore waters. Many varieties of seabirds congregate around this area of estuaries and mudflats.
Taking these key elements as inspiration, we have depicted gulls soaring around an abstract representation of wind-blown sailing ships, representing the freedom given by the gift of life. This wall artwork is a reminder of the importance of organ donation and is a permanent public artwork in the main entrance to the NHS hospital in Southampton.
All the birds are decorated in bright sky patterns as they flit amongst the sails, in colours that are reminiscent of early summer days to stormy blues and sea reflected turquoise to sunset pinks and purples. Their feathers and other features are picked out in glistening aluminium so that they shimmer in various lights throughout the day. Every bird is fitted with hidden spacers to give a shadowy depth.
Some birds form a heart shape around the Gift of Life wording, whilst others weave around a line of prose.
Stormy seas may make our journey hard to bear,
But our life’s voyage can be eased by another,
Who selflessly offers us their precious gifts.
Feedback
“We are so pleased to have this beautiful artwork in place to recognise the gift of life given by organ and tissue donors and their families and it has been great to work with the Hospital Art Studio and UHS teams in achieving this. I particularly like how the ‘Sails and Seabirds’ represents not only the end of life journey of those who donate but also the new voyages that they offer the transplant recipients. It seems particularly fitting to have the artwork installed in time for national organ donation week, when we are asking everyone to think about what they would want to happen at the end of their life and register their donation decision on the organ donor register.”
Rachel Clare, Specialist Nurse for Organ Donation.
(Pictured above with David Thomson, Specialist Nurse for Organ Donation).
“The memorial is a fitting way to honour the memory of those who had made the decision to donate. This memorial means a lot as it is a lasting recognition of what donors and their families have given to save or change another person’s life.
I love the idea of the yachts in the memorial as it reminds me of when you see one go over the horizon it will go out of your view but into someone else’s. In the same way when you lose someone but they donate, someone else’s life can begin again. It is so important that people know the importance of donating and how well supported you are throughout that process.”
Pauline Holmes, mother of organ donor Russell Holmes who died suddenly in 2008 following a brain haemorrhage at the age of 26.