Creative Voices – Artist Facilitator

Project brief:

We are commissioning a lead artist to deliver a community-led creative project with patients living with Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia.

The project will explore lived experience, challenge stigma, and amplify underrepresented voices within healthcare through creative practice.

The artist will work alongside Arts at NUH, the Adult Haemoglobinopathy team, and patients to co-design and deliver creative workshops using multiple artforms.

Across ten sessions, participants will explore creative expression relating to chronic illness, identity, and health inequalities.

The project will culminate in a public exhibition at New Art Exchange for one month, followed by permanent installation within Nottingham City Hospital.

This work responds directly to patient feedback around stigma, disempowerment, and lack of understanding in healthcare settings.

Aims of the project:

Bring people together – Create a safe, inclusive space for shared experience and creative expression
Amplify patient voice – Enable authentic and empowering storytelling
Challenge stigma and inequality: Increase awareness of Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia, including racism and bias in healthcare
Improve environments – Create artwork that reflects the communities served
Support wellbeing – Build confidence, reduce isolation, and encourage engagement with healthcare services

Approach:

This is a fully co-designed, community-led project. Patients will help shape:

The selection of artists
The creative approach and artforms used
The structure and content of workshops
How their stories are represented
Artists must work collaboratively and sensitively, prioritising dignity, cultural understanding, and participant ownership.

Location and travel:

Sessions will take place at New Art Exchange (NAE), Nottingham. The role requires travel to both New Art Exchange and Nottingham University Hospitals sites.