Organ Donor Memorial - The Gift of Life

Commissioned by St Vincent’s Hospital Sydney in partnership with the NSW Organ and Tissue Donation Service. This artwork Gift of Life is dedicated to all organ and tissue donors and their families, whose generosity makes transplantation possible. Their gift of donation transforms tragedy into hope, sickness into healing and loss into legacy.

This tribute is a way to recognise and say thank you, to all organ and tissue donors - past, present and future.

St Vincent’s Hospital extends our heartfelt thanks to donors and their families for their precious gift of life and recognise that the decision to donate comes at a difficult time and is an act of enormous generosity. St Vincent’s also thanks the artist Miriam Ross, a member of a donor family, on her creativity and dedication to this project

 

Miriam Ross
The Gift of Life

2021
Wood panel, tiles, glass, handmade clay pieces

“The Tree of Life is a universal motif common to many religious and spiritual traditions that represents the circle of life and is the centre of the universe. I believe this is apt because at the time of organ and tissue donation all those involved become forever connected with the Donor who is now at the centre of their collective universes.

The tree itself is an oak tree. I selected this tree to describe the qualities of the donor, the donation itself and their loved ones. An oak tree is strong and is associated with longevity beyond record. It is firmly fixed and will endure, just as the donation will endure through the many lives it will impact. 

Donation is a time of life, death and rebirth; a full cycle of life is depicted in the design by Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter. During this cycle some things live, and others die, and out of their death comes new life and rebirth. The exiting butterflies in my design depict the completion of the donation, as the donor’s spirit or essence leaves us, they transform death into life.” 

- Miriam Ross, Creativity Wild Mosaics

Symbolism in The Gift of Life

 

 Tree of Life

The tree of life connects all different worlds and is the centre of the universe. I believe this is apt because at the time of the organ donation all people involved become forever connected with the Donor who is now at the centre of their collective universes. As the donation is a gift, I created the title Gift of Life to incorporate both meanings.

Expressed as a ‘tree of life’ using action and colour. I have included some gold in the tree trunk to signify how precious the donation is.

 
 Tree

I selected this tree to describe the qualities of the donor, the donation itself and their loved ones. A tree is strong and is associated with longevity beyond record. It is firmly fixed and will endure, just as the donation will endure through the many lives it will impact.

 
Seasons and changing leaves

This is a time of life, death and rebirth; a full cycle of life depicted in the design by spring, summer, autumn and winter. During this cycle some things live, and others die. The colours in the background and the leaves and flowers in the tree change as the seasons change.

 

 red bat

 

 Ancient China Red Bat – symbol for happiness. (Black used instead of red)

 china butterfly

 

Ancient China butterfly – symbol for immortality, when seen with a cat, this symbolises long life. I included this as the donor and recipient’s lives are extended through this gift.
As the donor completes their donation, transforming death into life, their spirit or essence leaves us. This is depicted in my design by exiting butterflies.

 rainbow2

 

 LGBTQI rainbow appears on my signature teddy (appearing in all my artworks), to include this important part of the hospital community.

 mushroom

 

I have used fungus which grows out of dead organisms next to a newly emerged flower to symbolise new life emerging from death.

 
 Sky colours

I used the colours found in the hospital logo to create a night sky.

 
 Blue birds

This is a personal symbol. To me blue birds are a symbol of happiness.

 
 Dragonflies “A dragonfly is a symbol of change, transformation and self-realization. It teaches us to love life, to rejoice and have faith even amidst difficulties”.  (taken from Hindustan Times)

 

What can you do?

Organ and tissue donation saves lives. Registering as an organ and tissue donor gives hope to the 1,800 Australians who are currently waiting for a life-saving transplant.

Registering as a donor is easy and only takes one minute at donatelife.gov.au. It’s important to tell your loved ones once you’ve registered, because families play a crucial role in the donation process and are asked to confirm the decision of their loved one. 9 in 10 families agree to donation when their family member was a registered donor.