Visitors to Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool, UK can see a painting by Mexican artist Aliza Nisenbaum depicting nurses, doctors and porters who continued to work there during the Covid-19 pandemic. 19.
The book – titled team time storytelling, Alder Hey Children’s Hospital Emergency Department Covid Pandemic (2020) – was shown at Tate Liverpool in 2021; Tate loaned the work long-term to the hospital. The recent display of the group portrait in the hospital’s Park building marks the 75th anniversary of the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) on July 5.
The painting shows “a group of staff members who had used reflective, mental health and wellbeing-focused practices of medical teams working in traumatic situations as a way to share emotional responses to situations at work,” says a Tate press release.
Nisenbaum spoke to NHS staff via Zoom during lockdown and used photographs to create the group work. The painting also features drawings made by the models reflecting their pandemic experiences. Helen Legg, director of Tate Liverpool, said in a statement that the loan is “a rare example of a work of art from the national collection on public display in a non-artistic setting”.
Meanwhile, two projects funded by conservation body Historic England are also commemorating the NHS anniversary. The digital work moments of grace reflects 24 hours at Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospital in London, with contributions from 50 nurses and midwives and music composed by Nicole Robson.
“A permanent physical 24-hour sound and light installation at the hospital in 2024 where members of the public can sit in a new alcove in Central Hall to hear the stories of NHS workers, field recordings of nurses at work and original music. says a project brief.
The other initiative Answer the call, draws on archival material to explore the experiences of Commonwealth nurses who came to the UK in the post-war period, focusing on staff and patients attending Bristol’s Glenside Hospital . The project will conclude with an exhibition at the Glenside Hospital Museum in December. Both programs are funded by Historic England’s Everyday Heritage Grants.
