Pain imagery
Pain is a complex experience. It creates discomfort, keeps you awake, and drains you. However, paradoxically, it can also be a source of creative inspiration when we consciously give it attention.
The art of imagery expresses the human experience in a deeper, more visual way than a thousand words. By finding the peace and courage to focus my attention on the pain, images formed in my imagination that are difficult to describe in words. I captured those images by representing them in objects and drawings.
In the early stages of my creative journey of discovery, I recorded the images and associations in “pain sticks”. The wooden stick symbolized my spine and the added shapes represented pain associations such as compression, blockage, and harness. Then, I continued drawing the images in a diary and later in autonomous drawings. I still make objects, now in a more free style. My work has evolved from representing physical pain, to expressing existential feelings such as fear, sadness and loneliness.
My recent work reflects how I experience my own physicality in relation to the world around me. A selection of this is now available, see WORK.
Framing Pain
Project
Being attentively aware of the pain, observing it and visualizing it. In retrospect, this marks an escape from a vicious circle in which I was caught due to health problems. What did imagery bring to me? Understanding. Understanding of the quirks and whims of my own body and – very surprising – understanding from the people around me. Moreover, it proved to be a very suitable instrument in the relationship and communication with clinicians as well.
That raised the question: If it has helped me, could it help other people with chronic pain issues too? Each with their own expression skills? In the project Framing Pain, I want to explore this in collaboration with pain patients and healthcare professionals. I hereby explicitly refer to chronic pain, pain of which the physical cause is difficult to identify but which still persists.
Imagine asking people with chronic pain to visualize their pain. Which hints and suggestions are needed and what will be the output? These questions are the starting point for the project that I have in mind. A project in which chronic pain patients are encouraged to express their pain in a personal, creative way, to capture their imagery and then share it with their environment, fellow sufferers and practitioners.
Bringing together all the imagery and underlying stories could offer interesting, illustrative material for communication, debate and research. Chronic pain, a common problem, is getting a face. Framing Pain! See also the project Framing Pain on the website of DWARS ontwerp.
