Arts in Health Care Trust

Artist Sara Job was invited by the The Arts in Health Care Trust to be Artist in Residence for six months. Based at The Hollies Day Care Centre Sara interacted with the clients which formed the inspiration for her exhibition.

Sara describes her experience as having 3 phases. Firstly she established her identity as a visiting artist and got to know the clients through a series of life drawings. “I was delighted with the positive response from the clients both to the drawings themselves and to the experience of sitting as a model and benefitting from the one-to-one interaction this provided.”

The second phase looked at issues of anxiety through making Guatemalan Worry Dolls believed to take away troubles that are shared with them. Clients made their own worry dolls which Sara used as inspriration for her series of drawings and paintings.
" Often the loss of independence and control in our latter years brings an acute sense of anxiety which can at times seem overwhelming. The concept of identifying and sharing worries was addressed as a way of managing anxiety rather than necessarily eradicating problems.”

The last phase was based around issues relating to memory and reminiscences. “We have had some amazing sessions where clients have recounted their treasured memories and on occasions we have discussed the loss, confusion or suppression of memories. I have then used these recollections as subject matter for a series of monoprints where the representative subject matter is held within the physical confines of a storage box. The prints offer tantalizing glimpses into very personal life experiences. Clients have also been able to have a go at monoprinting themselves.”

An intimate experience that can be reflected through Sara’s work:

“My pencil studies of the worry dolls have an almost sinister quality that speaks volumes of the disturbing force anxiety can wield. The painted images of the worry dolls have more a sense of puppet-like suspended animation, reflecting the lessening degree of power, control and activity some of the elderly feel in their lives. The placement of the symbolic memory objects within the boxes has elevated the reminiscences to precious treasures, to be wrapped and unwrapped as a part of and testament to each person’s identity and unique life experiences.”