Supporting information

A Complex Entanglement - Jane Hayes Greenwood

Examples of work and public activities

My proposed activity A Complex Entanglement is designed to create multiple entry points and overlapping benefits across a wide range of audiences. I will use a multidisciplinary approach bringing together personal story telling, artistic innovation and critical discourse with historical insight, scientific knowledge and meaningful collaboration.

High-quality, innovative exhibition

A Complex Entanglement culminates in a 30-minute moving image work and a 10-metre mural. Developed through six years of research into medicinal plants and a six-month residency at the Royal College of Physicians (RCP), the work will combines autobiography, scientific enquiry and high production values. Through film, mural, public programmes and workshops, audiences will encounter a sensorial, layered experience exploring plant-derived medicines and their emotional, social and political dimensions.

Reframing history through contemporary art

By placing the moving image and mural in dialogue with the RCP’s historic collections and medicinal garden of over 1,100 plants, the project recontextualises medical artefacts for contemporary audiences. It opens specialist archives to wider cultural engagement and invites reflection on the relationship between art and medicine, past and present.

Audience reach and professional standing
I am an established artist with over 14 years of exhibitions in the UK. Alongside my practice, I teach at City & Guilds of London Art School, Turps Art School and the Essential School of Painting. My work is held in public and private collections.

Expanding a practice rooted in plant knowledge

This project extends my long-standing investigation into relationships between plants and bodies and marks my first long-form moving image work. Structured in chapters and drawing on the RCP’s collections and garden, the film explores plants such as opium poppy, foxglove, ephedra, magic mushroom and pacific yew. Scientific histories are interwoven with cultural uses of medicine, ritual and healing, alongside a personal narrative shaped by early experiences of substance use, illness and loss.

Working with a CGI animator and referencing the visual language of my paintings, the film develops a shifting aesthetic that reflects how people live with medicines and intoxicants, and how the boundaries between nature, culture and the body remain porous.

The project also includes a permanent large-scale mural for the Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) at Kendray Hospital. Drawing on botanical forms and healing plants, the mural creates a calm, immersive environment for patients, staff and visitors, encouraging slow looking and moments of grounding within a clinical setting.

The project aligns with the RCP’s public engagement and holistic care programmes and forms part of Hospital Rooms’ SWYFT initiative, which embeds museum-quality artworks in mental-health settings.

Accessible programming

Working with curators, educators, outreach teams, patients and collaborators at the RCP and Hospital Rooms, I will deliver an extensive, accessible programme of exhibitions and events, supported by charities, community groups and educational institutions.

Activities include:

• 180 days of residency at the RCP, with regular public engagement opportunities.

• 90-day solo exhibition (my first institutional solo show) at the RCP Museum.

• Permanent mural at Kendray Hospital, developed through RCP research and produced by Hospital Rooms.

• Free, family-friendly artist-led tours of the RCP exhibition with curators Gayle Chapman and Pamela Ford.

• Medicinal garden tours and events with Professor John Newton and Jane Knowles, linking art, horticulture and medical history.

• Private screenings and talks for RCP medical students and staff on holistic care, substance use and mental health.

• Interactive materials for families, including colouring sheets and activities focused on medicinal plants.

• Three workshops at Block 336 for young people facing mental-health barriers, delivered with Queer Mind, Lambeth Young Carers and Mosaic Clubhouse.

• Publication launch and artist talk at Yorkshire Sculpture Park, organised by Hospital Rooms, with distribution to hospitals, libraries, universities and charities.

• Two artist talks and crits at City & Guilds of London Art School and the Essential School of Painting.

• Digital resources hosted on the RCP and my website, including research materials and filmed talks.

• Artist brief for Kendray Hospital staff, outlining the mural’s botanical and historical context.

• Legacy screenings at Wellcome Collection, Matt’s Gallery, The Lowry, Eastside Projects and Quench Gallery.
  

All activities will be delivered by experienced outreach and education teams with safeguarding expertise.

Inclusive environment

RCP and Kendray Hospital provide comprehensive accessibility across physical, sensory and digital needs, including wheelchair access, hearing loops, autism-friendly provision, professional medical support and online access through subtitled films, documented talks and digital resources. This ensures multiple points of entry for families, patients and the general public.

Medical and scientific community – interdisciplinary dialogue

Situated within the Royal College of Physicians and Kendray Hospital, the project fosters dialogue between contemporary art, medical science, botany and healthcare practice. Collaborations with Professor John Newton, Jane Knowles, Pamela Forde, Dr Henry Oakley, Hospital Rooms curators and medical staff create opportunities for reflection on the cultural, historical and emotional dimensions of medicine.

Research demonstrates that engagement with art enhances observation, empathy and communication skills in medical training. By exploring lived experiences of illness and care through visual art, the project supports reflective practice, challenges unconscious bias and contributes to the development of compassionate healthcare professionals.

Audience engagement beyond specialist communities

The project prioritises audiences often excluded from cultural engagement, particularly patients and visitors at Kendray Hospital. By embedding the mural within the PICU and supporting engagement through facilitated sessions, the work reaches people from diverse social and economic backgrounds. Building on the RCP’s outreach networks, the project strengthens connections between art, science and local communities.

How my project will benefit patients, staff and visitors at Kendray Hospital

1. Enhancing wellbeing through a calming environment
The permanent mural introduces botanical research through a soothing visual language that supports emotional regulation, reduces stress and offers moments of visual rest for staff.

2. Creating moments of connection and reflection
Themes of healing and transformation provide gentle points of focus without clinical framing, offering grounding for patients and brief mental respite for staff.

3. Supporting trauma-informed engagement and lasting value
Developed within Hospital Rooms’ safeguarding frameworks, the mural and associated activities are inclusive and sensitive. As a permanent artwork, it provides long-term cultural value for future patients and staff.

Multi-channel engagement

The project combines exhibition, film, mural, digital resources, live events and community outreach, ensuring broad access regardless of audience background or engagement level.

Legacy

With planned screenings, digital archiving, a permanent mural and a published book, the project will continue to influence conversations around art, healing and cultural history well beyond its initial presentation.

Bridging disciplines for broader relevance

By interweaving art, medicine, history and botany, A Complex Entanglement cultivates cross-disciplinary engagement and positions contemporary art as a vital space for exploring care, knowledge and lived experience.