A recovering cancer patient has turned illness into art by transforming brain scans into striking paintings after being diagnosed with a tumour herself.
Angie Seaway creates the powerful works using real medical images sent to her by patients.
The scans come from people who have suffered strokes, aneurysms and other serious medical events.
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With their consent, Angie turns the black-and-white images into vivid works of art in a project that has become a heartfelt tribute to the NHS.
So far, the 59-year-old has painted 13 pieces from patients of all ages, including two children.
Angie, from Exmouth, Devon, was inspired by her own cancer journey after being diagnosed with a tumour in her chest several years ago.
“I wanted to show what people go through when they are diagnosed – from that moment when you look at a scan and are told what the consequences of it for you will be,” she told What’s The Jam.
“The whole subject fascinates me.
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“Sometimes a brain scan looks horrific and the patient can still be quite able.
“And sometimes the scan will just show a tiny issue which causes bigger problems.
“A brain scan is just black and white.
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“But by adding colour it revealed a kind of hidden beauty in them.
“I asked each person to choose three colours that were significant to them.
“And then I incorporated those colours into their portrait.”
Angie said all the patients who submitted scans were from the South West.
She said: “I put a notice on social media to see if anybody had had a brain scan, and it evolved into this project.
“We had a meeting with all the people involved and everyone was very open about what they’d been through.
“It was really nice to be able to listen to them and to sort of share that journey with them.
“It became a kind of love letter to the NHS because we were all cared for by them through our illnesses.”
A recent exhibition of Angie’s work was warmly received by visitors.
One comment in the book described the paintings as “mesmerising and thought provoking”.
Another read: “Insight into our inner worlds, an intriguing interpretation.”
While someone else wrote: “Found myself crying and smiling at the same moment.”
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