Beyond the “White Cube”. Intersecting Art and Design in Hospital Spaces

This paper explores hospitals as contemporary sites of artistic and critical creation, focusing on the artistic practices of Panteha Abareshi (they/them), Marcus Coates (he/him), Jesse Darling (he/him), and Carolyn Lazard (they/them). It investigates how their personal experiences of pain, illness, and hospitalization inform their artistic practices, emphasizing the intricate relationship between visual representation, embodied knowledge, and medicalized environments. These artists critically engage with the medicalization of their bodies, challenging conventional health narratives and questioning institutionalized understandings of care and illness. Abareshi’s performances, videos, and sculptural installations confront the medical surveillance of their body, using gestural forms to critique objectification, power, and the able-bodied gaze. Coates’ projects engage with mental health by offering alternative representations of personal. Darling reworks medical objects in their art to subvert the sterile environment, questioning the dynamics of vulnerability and care. Lazard’s multidisciplinary practice, including video, performance, and installation, explores the nuances of caregiving and patienthood, offering new ways to understand care within healthcare settings. experiences, rethinking the roles typically assigned within psychiatric contexts. By focusing on these contemporary artists and their work within hospital settings, this contribution offers insights into the dynamic relationship between art, health, and healing, revealing new possibilities at the intersection of art, design, and medical spaces.