The clinical evidence base continues to grow making the case that art and creativity can be drivers for health and well-being — as it’s proven to me in my own life. Most recently, cases have been made by Emily Peters, documented in her book Remaking Medicine; by Robin Strongin, advocate for arts, medicine, and well-being from her base in Washington, DC; and, by my Belgium-based colleague and friend Koen Kas whose book addressing themes of art and health will soon be published.
I was inspired at the convergence of art and well-being during a visit on 20 September to the National Museum of Ceramics in Valencia, Spain — officially known as the Museo Nacional de Cerámica y Artes Suntuarias González Martí.
While we planned our visit to explore the wealth of Spain’s ceramic traditions, serendipity and timing intervened to place us in front of a special exhibit coined “TotCor” — which roughly translated means “All Heart.”
Over a dozen artists collaborated in this project, which was started by artist Pepe Reverter, who created a ceramic base of a heart design each artist used as the basic canvas-template.
Among the creative minds adapting the heart-base to their unique aesthetics were Banksy, Lolita Cortes, and Rosa Cortiella, among others. I was drawn especially to one heart whose artist seemed to channel the urban graffiti style work of Keith Haring by Javirroyo (shown at the top right of the 9 here), and another echoing Piet Mondrian’s 1942 work New York City (shown in the middle of the top row).
In my search of health everywhere, I was most drawn into the work titled “Corktail” created by Antoni Miralda.
See the center of 9 of the TotCor hearts I curated here for you to view: this is Corktail in full, the golden beating heart-on-heart and then spiky elements “implanted” at the top.
While Miralda is best-known for works focusing on food and rituals (in COLOR!), I’ve chosen to take this work literally as a human heart embedded in the iconic heart symbol. (Ironically and in synchronicity, I’m in Europe these few weeks working, in part, on food-as-medicine projects.
Here is a close-up of the 18K gold heart, a golden key at the bottom, with spiky vein-like features around the main organ. As with all art, the interpretation of what you see is up to you.
”In Tot Cor, the heart, a metaphor of our inner self, materialises to become a visible part of our everyday life. Its mere presence brings the best out of us,” the project’s website explains.
Health Populi’s Hot Points: Note that each heart-work is a limited edition available for purchase, the proceeds for which go to the Miquel Valls Foundation — a Spanish non-profit dedicated to people dealing with ALS (“ELA” in Spanish) and other motor neuron conditions.
One such person, Paquita Sancho, was the mother of the exhibit creator Pepa Reverter. The program notes, “Her (Paquita’s) vital energy is the driving force behind this project, which aims to highlight the good people, those who are kind, generous and exemplary.”
Many of us are drawn to our careers in the health/care ecosystem based on this ethos. I laud and am grateful to the organizers and artists who have collaborated on this exhibit for the benefit of patients and families, and for the inspiration they light under me to continue to work for health access, health equity, and social health for all.
When art inspires us, it’s a universal driver for health and well-being.