Wythenshawe Hospital, Manchester
PROJECT: 300 artworks across 28 wards
PRODUCTS: PhotoPanels, PhotoGlassWorks, PhotoWall Smooth Wallpaper, PhotoWindow
IMAGES: Bespoke photography of South Manchester. Other Manchester, Landscape and Nature images from collections.
SERVICE: Locations Research, Photography, Consultancy (Sizes, Locations, Products, Images, Costings), Artworking, Project Management, Manufacturing and Installation.
University Hospital South Manchester (UHSM, also known as Wythenshawe Hospital) is one of the largest hospitals in the North of England and serves a very large population across South Manchester.
As part of a project to make the hospital environment easier for dementia patients, we were commissioned to install artworks on 28 wards. This required nearly 300 artworks in five main image groups: central Manchester; local towns; local nature, other nature and flowers. Every one of the wards had different images, ensuring that dementia patients, visiting staff, and visitors would be able to tell one ward from another.
The key project aims were: to create a positive, welcoming and calming environment; to create recognisable 'waymarkers'; to make the hospital less austere, cluttered, clinical and confusing for both patients and staff.
This project had a very short deadline and some significant obstacles to meeting it: principally the fact that it was commissioned in November 2013, had to be fully installed by the end of March 2014 and required a lot of local photography in the middle of Winter before any production could even begin. The production schedule left just December in which to photograph and process many images around South Manchester. Knowing that Winter weather in the North-West was likely to be very unreliable, to say the least, this was going to be a challenge! As it turned out, we had to make several photography trips even into February, cutting the image processing, selection, approval and artworking process very fine indeed!
We must give credit to our manufacturing and installation teams who made and installed artworks day after day for the whole month of March 2014 without missing a beat. During the month onsite installing we saw first-hand what a challenging, serious environment this was to work in. So it was incredibly satisfying to receive such positive feedback from consultants, doctors, nurses, housekeepers, cleaners, porters, visitors and, yes, patients too. The words most often used to describe the transformation were 'calming' and 'bright' - a very positive outcome.
On behalf of the Trust, I just wanted to write you a brief testimonial for your supplying and fixing of photographic artwork to UHSM. The photographs of local scenes, which will be familiar to many of our patients, were stunning. I would also like to thank your team of installers who were very accommodating with our staff in carrying out the works successfully.
John Berry
Principal Building Surveyor
University Hospital of South Manchester NHS Foundation Trust
© Blue Pearl Photographic Ltd.
