Under the Microscope at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) is an exhibition focusing on the complexities of heart disease in young people and on the pioneering work of researchers at GOSH in developing gene therapy for children with rare diseases. The project was developed under GO Create! – the hospital’s arts programme – and explores how children interpret medical information. The exhibition runs until 19 March 2016.
Artist in residence Sofie Layton spent almost a year working with patients, their families, clinicians and researchers to create a three-part exhibition of prints, photos and patient stories.
Sofie observed patients in the clinic and ran workshops – often very intimate, individual meetings – to learn the language used by young people, their parents and medical xanax teams to describe heart disease. During these sessions, the invisible was made visible as young people with a congenital heart disease were shown 3D-printed models of their heart to help them better understand their disease. These 3D hearts are beautiful objects in their own right and sit opposite the colourful prints, providing a poignant reminder of the young people undergoing treatment at GOSH for serious illnesses.
Visitors can listen to patients’ stories in the cardiac section of the exhibition and in the ‘Isolation Tent’ – an immersive experience that allows the viewer to experience gene therapy from a patient’s point of view.
A selection of the artwork is now on display in the hospital’s main reception and members of the public can listen to patient stories by booking a tour of The Gallery and The Isolation Tent through GO Create! Tours can be booked until 18 March by emailing firstname.lastname@example.org.
For more information visit http://blog.gosh.org/our-hospital/the-science-and-art-of-medicine-in-under-the-microscope/