Salisbury District Hospital were creating a garden of remembrance and contacted us to design a freestanding sculpture, to fit within the planting, and act as a permanent memorial to organ donors and their families.

The sculpture we designed features a kaleidoscope of butterflies congregating into a heart shape – a metaphor for ‘the Gift of Life’. Our latest public art is laser cut from a single piece of copper, seeming delicate but robust enough for longevity in outdoor conditions.

The sculpture is securely mounted into a large weathered rock but appears as if the butterflies are fluttering in mid air. The size of this organ donation artwork is 1 metre high but is lifted to 2 metres high by a discreetly constructed ‘rockery’ that will be covered by low growing vegetation in time.

BJ Stainless Fabrications, based in Leeds, did a fantastic job of creating our most recent healthcare artwork. First laser cutting out the intricate patterns, then chemically aging before finishing with many applications of lacquer to give a shimmering effect in natural daylight, imitating butterflies in flight. They also created a wheelchair friendly information plaque, with the same detailed care, to be fitted onsite at an angle to a sturdy, green post.

Installation went extremely smoothly all due to the help of our favourite, and very professional, John Simpson of Onsite Print Installations!

See more images, information and a video about the finished sculpture here.