2017 - 2022 | VUB PHD PROJECT

Professional artists are increasingly being introduced into palliative care. The central aim of this dissertation is to gain a deeper understanding of how their presence and practice affect the care environment (including the end-users and caregivers), and how working in palliative care affects the artists themselves. Ethnographic research was conducted, specifically observations and formal and informal interviews in a palliative and supportive daycare centre with an interdisciplinary art program. The research results show that the end-users experienced and valued the presence and activities of the artists very differently. Moreover, the art program increased the complexity of the centre’s overall functioning, which affected the caregivers both personally and professionally. Also, findings show how the artists adapted their artistic practice and shaped their relationships with the end-users. An in-depth exploration of the artistic practice of one of the artists reveals how risk and safety were negotiated in an immersive performance, developed with and for the daycare centre. In conclusion, this dissertation demonstrates the importance of considering artistic activities in palliative care more broadly than merely focusing on the impact on the end-users (as most studies do) and highlights the need for continued attentiveness towards the process.