Title: Chemo day drawings series 1 & 2
Year: 2019-2020
Media:Ink and marker pens on Chinese calligraphy practice paper
Dimensions:34.5x26cm
Description: I was diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2018 and during 2019, on each treatment day – generally every fortnight – various medical solutions dripped into my body over about 5-6 hours and I drew in the treatment chair.
I always had a stack of paper to allow marks to go through the paper from one drawing to the next to be used as the next starting point, so the marks provided a history. By the end of the day, my eyes were rather blurry making it hard to see! The folds, crumples and tears in the paper are an intrinsic part of the work in which the paper can be seen as a reflection of the fragility of the body.
It turned out I also had secondary breast cancer which I am still being treated for.
This series is now in the Wellcome Collection’s library.
In looking at these images, a question surfaced in my mind “what is time well spent?” Time we so often take for granted, while away, or only half-inhabit whilst waiting for the present we think we want to enjoy. For me, these images have come to represent a roadmap; they emphasize the importance of being in time with your own life, and developing a practice that reflects this, so that you can let your imagination soar above the pain and suffering. They are also like a bridge, between the getting and the better, which can only be crossed by that individual who is on it. That is what makes this body of work so uplifting and so rare. They are a triumph of the soul, and should be shared widely.
Nico Kos (curator)