Chance: heart created of paramedics’ uniforms

An ambulance shift starts when something bad happens. Once on call, medics can never predict the scenario and the challenges they will face. Staff are not always greeted with warmth, respect and open arms. They come to patients at the most difficult moments in their lives, when they are in panic, stress, pain and immense fear. These experiences are reflected and recalled in the paramedics’ working uniforms.

Blood stains, torn sleeves or broken buttons – each defect symbolises a story and shows the reality of the job. To honor the dedication of ambulance workers, I decided to create an installation of worn paramedics’ uniforms. The clothes became a kind of chronicle of a story, of saved lifes, the tears of loved ones and the belief that everything will be alright. Paramedics arriving at the scene bring with them not only medical tools, but also the opportunity to save. This is reflected in the title of the installation – ‘Chance’.

In my installation ‘Chance’, I chose to represent the motive of the heart, which is the most important organ of human life. It is the mechanism that drives the blood throughout the body and allows us to live until the last beat. The next important phase was the technical execution of the work. The working process involved a lot of experimentation with different garment fabrics, trying to find the right method: one part was more efficient to glue and the other to sew by hand.

In the work I used neon orange uniform parts that make the workers more visible. I included special lighting to prevent the materials from losing their brightness in the installation. The uniforms covering the heart-shaped frame symbolise the dedication of the ambulance workers. The clothes may be stained, torn and damaged, but the most important thing is a saved heart.

Dimensions: 90 x 140 x 14 cm