The work: Kirilee West, 6:46am, 2021. Oil on panel, 42 x 60cm. Photograph, various dimensions. Courtesy: the artist.
Working in the emergency department of a hospital is not everything it is made out to be on television. Nurses like Meanjin-based artist Kirilee West see the moments of softness and humanity as they flit between patients which Hollywood often ignores for drama, and West hopes to communicate these poignant scenes through art where words fail. In her work 6:46am, a monochromatic colour palette sees the hospital ward transformed from organised chaos and antiseptic smells into something warm and almost familiar. No longer brightly lit, the edges of the room are barely visible and the bed sits unmade, its sheets still warm from the patient who recently exited. The artist’s choice of oil paint, a famously slow-drying medium, meant that this scene must have been pondered for a long period of time, despite the hectic energy required in such a workplace. The medium has also conferred upon the tousled linens an inner glow as they emerge from the shadows, elevating a mere minute in time to something monumental. These choices undertake to familiarise West’s audience with the care practices nurses undertake between patients – their acts of support that go unnoticed, but remain essential to provide those suffering with the highest level of comfort and protection. West’s hand has reproduced the hospital room as she sees it, and in turn exposes the true beauty of the service she and the other hospital staff provide for us in our time of need.