bdb is delighted to unveil today with Bloomin Yorkshire’s founder, Janice Richardson, its Rose of Hope artistic installation. The installation was created to celebrate the local charity’s mission to raise awareness and funding for organ donation and kidney research. Designed by Jessica Rose Baker and produced by Yorkshire artist Chris Davies from Freitag Works, the installation attempts to describe the experience of living with kidney disease through a number of contrasting elements. These are deliberately subtle, requiring the observer to think and ask questions. The steel mesh screen creates a blurred and diffused view of the installation to symbolise that things are no longer as clear or as predictable as they once were. The silver metal roses gradually rise above the screen, partly representing the hope that dialysis offers in the interim, also acknowledging that the dream remains that a donor might be found to rise above an uncertain future.

THE ROSE OF HOPE

The Rose of Hope was designed by 10-year-old Isabell Taylor from Pudsey Primrose Hill primary school, the winner of a County wide competition held by Bloomin Yorkshire in 2016. Pupils were asked to design a new Yorkshire Rose. A teaching package was sent to participating schools with information on organ donation, healthy lifestyle and preventative action. These packages encouraged open discussion on these serious health issues in an informal, fun environment. The winning rose was chosen by a celebrity panel which included artists Ashley Jackson and Chris Geall.

Every purchase made helps someone needing a transplant. To purchase a rose, please contact Bloomin Yorkshire.

ABOUT BLOOMIN YORKSHIRE

Bloomin Yorkshire was founded when Janice Richardson lost a dear friend and fellow dialysis patient. “The very day Tony passed away the first white rose bloomed in my garden, he was such a proud Yorkshire man and it was like a sign. I just knew that I could use the Yorkshire Rose, a symbol of our great County, to spread the joy and positivity I feel about life and where I live no matter what life’s challenges bring”. For Janice Richardson life is ‘bloomin marvellous’, she simply refuses to let anything get her down. As a teenager her parents were warned she may suffer from kidney failure, but it wasn’t until her forties that her life hung in the balance. Janice started dialysis but a series of illnesses led to total organ failure. She was in a coma for weeks at St James Hospital in Leeds. Against all odds Janice survived, but two kidney transplants including one from her sister, have failed. Janice’s chances of getting another transplant are highly unlikely due to past medical complications and dialysis is needed 3 times a week.

 

Posted by: Catherine Sherwood | Posted in: Events