Posted on 4 February 2021

A stunning piece of art created to thank the nation’s health workers has been donated to The Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital (RJAH) by Shrewsbury artist, Rory McCann.
 
Rory, who donated the work of art through the Oswestry-based hospital’s League of Friends, ran a competition across his school network to design a piece of artwork focussing on the tranquillity of nature as a way to thank NHS workers for caring for everyone’s wellbeing.
 
Rory said: “Most of my work takes place in schools across the UK but when the pandemic struck my work was put on hold. I still needed a creative outlet, so I launched a competition to help occupy schoolchildren during their time at home.
 
“The idea was to create a design within a yin-yang template that showed how they maintain a healthy balance of everything going on in their lives. I especially wanted them to focus on their relationship with nature and how, for many of us, it has been a vital source of peace and tranquillity this past year.”
 
The competition was a huge success with 147 designs submitted and children between the ages of four and 14 taking part. Eight winning entries were selected from across three different age groups and elements of all eight designs were used to create the final piece.
 
Incorporated into the design, across the rainbow in the sky, are the names of the first 100 NHS workers to lose their lives to coronavirus.
 
Rory added: “This piece of art is a token of my gratitude and appreciation – it’s dedicated to all the incredible frontline NHS staff that have bravely battled through the most challenging of times.
 
“I donated this piece to RJAH as a personal thank you, as I was under their care for 28 years after I was diagnosed with Juvenile Arthritis as a child.”
 
Victoria Sugden, League of Friends Charity Director, said: “We’re so grateful to Rory for his time and effort in running this competition to engage with children during these difficult times.
 
“The artwork he has created is magical and will always remind us of the light in dark times and positive actions that come from our community. Thank you to Rory and to everyone else involved – we will treasure this work!”

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