Chosen from seven finalists, Martin Bonney, Martha Glazzard and Kathryn Holdsworth of Nottingham Trent University, impressed the judges and sponsors, 3M Healthcare, Vectura Group and the Healthcare and Bioscience iNet with their artistic interpretation of scientific themes. Each received a prize of £250.
Glazzard’s work, Autoclave, received the 3M Health Care award in the ‘safeguarding health by preventing infection’ category. Her knitted design with interwoven circuit board, producing a colour-changing effect, expresses the sterilising properties of heat on bacteria-covered agar plates. It will be on permanent display at 3M Health Care’s offices in Loughborough.
Bonney took the Vectura award in the ‘Innovation in Healthcare and Bioscience’ category for The Modern Goddess Gown, a silk velvet dress richly embroidered and crystal-encrusted to symbolise the professionally-tailored woman diagnosed with cancer.
‘Pockets of Protection’ secured Holdsworth the iNet award in the ‘Innovation in Healthcare and Bioscience’ category. A series of fine-gauge wire knitted pockets are filled with clear glass shot-through by red pigmentation to symbolise spreading infection, and its containment, by the healing properties of the bandage.
The finalists also included students from Loughborough University School of Art and design with works exploring the bioscience of learning, the power of the microscope and a hand hygiene campaign. A piece based on the epidermis submitted by a Nottingham Trent University student in textile design and innovation also made the list.
‘It was fascinating to see the different creative interpretations of scientific concepts put forward by the finalists, and it made for some difficult judging decisions,’ said judge Emma Jenkins, marketing manager, Infection Prevention Division at 3M Health Care.
‘The pieces of artwork are technically and visually stunning, and we are delighted that we will be able to showcase one of them in our company headquarters in Loughborough.’
The Healthcare and Bioscience iNet is funded by the East Midlands Development Agency (emda) to stimulate business innovation through an advisory, training and events service. Bringing art and science together in this way is one means of stimulating creativity to generate new business ideas and concepts.
The finalists’ artwork will be exhibited at BioCity Nottingham, the UK’s largest bioscience innovation and incubation centre, and may be viewed by appointment.
