COMPASSION, CARE, HOPE
A moving artwork for International Nurses Day highlighting the anniversary of Florence Nightingale’s 200th birthday has been projected onto the façades of Lichfield Cathedral and Stanford Hall, the Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre in Nottinghamshire.
Defence Medical Services, Lichfield Cathedral and Luxmuralis Artistic collaboration, Peter Walker and David Harper, have come together to pay this tribute, highlighting the immeasurable contribution of nurses in civic and military life.
Photographs, and footage of the projections will be revealed on the 200th anniversary of Florence Nightingale’s birth, which is also International Nurses Day. People will also be able to see the full light show online via Lichfield Cathedrals and the Defence Medical Services social media platforms.
Inspired by the legacy of Florence Nightingale the founder of modern nursing, who was nicknamed ‘the Lady of the Lamp’, the moving projections and original accompanying music are designed as a thank you to generations of nurses from past to the present day.
Florence Nightingale pioneered many of the nursing practices in use at hospitals today, and her role in military nursing established 150 years of compassion, care and hope for those on the front line. The Defence and National Rehabilitation Centre opened in 2018 and continues in the tradition of Florence Nightingale to the present day.
On 28 September 2016 the freedom of Lichfield was conferred on the Defence Medical Services further cementing military ties with the city. The partnership with the Cathedral to mark this very special day is a symbol of that enduring historic relationship.
The projected artworks join other historic landmarks also marking International Nurses Day and Florence Nightingale’s bicentenary.
Luxmuralis artist Peter Walker said: “This anniversary allows us to reflect that duty, care and service around the world, since the foundation of modern nursing by Florence Nightingale to the present day should not be forgotten.”
Colonel S Findlay, Defence Nursing Advisor: “Military and Ministry of Defence civilian nurses, have stood shoulder to shoulder with their civilian colleagues throughout history. Today, as we reflect on International Nurses Day, we face a new battle; nurses are working tirelessly with the common goal to save lives and reduce the impact and spread of coronavirus. We are enormously proud of all nurses, and what they are achieving in these extraordinary times.”