I painted this creative piece after visiting a patient living with Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS)*. Despite the fact it was clearly a very painful, debilitating condition she came across as younger than she was and kept very active. She said she was very healthy apart from her condition, which certainly seemed to be the case.

However the only time she did mention the visible effect AS had on her spine was related to catching her reflection in an mirror. She told us how she was very critical of herself; she clearly didn’t like to be seen as ill and took a lot of care about her appearance like most women. This is why I’ve painted a woman with a straight spine looking into the mirror at an AS sufferer, the only time she really acknowledges she is ill is when she looks in the mirror.

However the condition is clearly still a burden which is represented by the dark, heavy colours emerging from behind the mirror. The colours have a relatively unpredictable pattern which reflects that you cannot tell its exact course and “flare ups” can happen at any time.

The colours do however trail onto the other half of the painting implying the condition does affect her everyday life but they are lighter, happier colours. Often she mentioned AS in a positive way, talking about the people she has met through the AS groups, hydrotherapy sessions etc, how they can be turned into very enjoyable, sociable events.

Despite the positives, the negative aspects still make up who she is, hence why there is no clear cut line between the two halves, it is impossible to separate the two. She does try to let the negatives affect her as little as possible, this is why I left a white hue around her, showing it hasn’t yet got to her positive spirit. Her stance is strong, reflecting her attitude and showing she is not giving into her condition.

*name and details changed to maintain patient-confidentiality