‘The Art of Repair’ is a poetry and visual arts project delivered by Lime at the Macmillan Cancer Information & Support Centre, North Manchester General Hospital. The project was supported by Macmillan and delivered in partnership with Lime Lead Artists Colette Whittington and Poet Zayneb Allak, Macmillan Centre Staff, Specialist nursing teams and Macmillan patients and their families.

A special collection of seven unique handcrafted artworks were unveiled on Monday 11^th November 2024 at the Centre and included the arts team, staff, patients and families who had all been involved in the project.

MFT currently has three Macmillan Cancer Information and Support Centres within its hospitals.  One at the Manchester Royal Infirmary, another at North Manchester General Hospital, with the third at Wythenshawe Hospital. The Centres offer a confidential service for anyone affected by cancer, including patients, carers, professionals and the general public.  They provide the opportunity for people affected by cancer to talk in confidence about what they are experiencing in a supportive and relaxing environment. The art and design scheme compliments this valued service and has created a welcoming and reassuring space where patients can seek support and respite.

Lime lead artist, Colette Whittington and poet, Zayneb Allak worked with over 50 patients, families and staff to develop the poem and artworks. Patients and their families engaged in meaningful conversations and creative activities led by the artists, often sharing personal stories about what it means to live with cancer. Staff also participated on the art project and shared with the artists thoughts and reflections surrounding their experience as care providers.

The artists went on to develop ideas for the artwork based on key themes that emerged from the consultations with staff, families and patients. Recurring themes included ‘repair’, feelings of ‘hope’ and ‘building connections’. Poet Zayneb was inspired to explore‘Kintsugi’, the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery by mending the areas of breakage – often with a lacquer dusted with powdered gold. She went on to produce a moving poem called ‘The Art of Repair’ encapsulating the themes of hope, care and repair.  Visual artist and printmaker Colette in response to the poem incorporated ‘Kintsugi’ in the form of gold leaf into her handmade artworks, with the addition of miniature figures building and repairing pots and urns, representing the vital connections and support people accessing the service experience.

The artist produced these unique artworks by individually hand carving and printing each one, a process and style similar to that of Japanese Woodcut. The artworks are located at the entrance, main sitting area, quiet room and main office and complimented by a new bright colour scheme.

Special thanks to the NMGH Planning and Estates Team for their commitment and support to help make this project possible.

For more information about Macmillan Cancer Information + Support Services please visit: https://www.macmillan.org.uk/