At the Lugo hospice the artist’s new panels: “I painted it as I wanted it to be the room where I said goodbye to my father”

On Wednesday, the new panels by the artist and art therapist Rita Mangano were officially inaugurated at the “Benedetta Corelli Grappadelli” Hospice in Lugo, which will embellish the Lughese structure responsible for administering palliative care to patients who face the most critical phases of a disease path. The project, made possible thanks to the collaboration between Istituto Oncologico Romagnolo and Bcc Ravenna, Forlivese and Imolese, represents a further step towards an ever greater humanization of therapies and places of care: a fundamental aspect especially for those facilities that deal with treatments that guarantee relief and dignity at the end of life.

In particular, in the case of the Hospice inside the “Umberto I” Hospital, the panels will embellish a very particular environment: the “Room of Silence”, a place designed for guests, their families but also doctors, nurses and operators can enjoy moments of peace, tranquility, serenity and spirituality. Inside, the paintings made by hand with acrylic colors by Rita Mangano, an artist and art therapist active for 40 years in the departments with humanization projects of hospitals such as, among others, the Tumor Institute of Milan, the “Niguarda” of the same capital Lombard or the “Maggiore” of Bologna.

“With these works we add another piece to the beauty of the Lugo Hospice, to which Rita had already contributed when the facility was opened in 2008-2009 – explained Luigi Montanari, Director of the Simple Departmental Structure of Cure during the ceremony. Palliative of the Ravenna area – a beautiful place helps to make patients, their families but also the operators themselves feel more welcome, so that they can face the difficulties they face with greater serenity. This project is the demonstration of the fact that when they are created synergies and there are shared objectives between the public service, voluntary associations such as the IOR and its partners, such as in this case the Bcc Ravenna, Forlivese and Imolese, very interesting things can be achieved that the whole territory can benefit from. that beauty becomes part of personal care, for ever better and more connected services sphere of the human being with all his needs, hopes and desires “.

“We often say that cancer is a pathology that affects the entire family system of those who receive a cancer diagnosis, also affecting the existence of their affections – says Fabrizio Miserocchi, IOR Director General – well this is even more true for those people therefore healing is no longer an achievable goal. It is therefore important to put patients and their loved ones in the best conditions to experience moments of spirituality, introspection and reflection in environments that are consonant and suitable for the purpose. Art is certainly one of the mediums through which the human being gets in direct contact with his deepest inner dimension: for this we are grateful to Rita Mangano for the effort made in the realization of these panels. The IOR, thanks also to the voices of those volunteers who lend their work alongside those who suffer, they know how important it is that hospitals and structures in the area offer beautiful and welcoming spaces to people who go there, especially to return to welcome the patient in the ward after a period like that of the pandemic where he was on the contrary kept away for safety reasons: it does not represent a medical added value, but humanly it makes a big difference ” .

During the ceremony it was Rita Mangano herself who explained the meaning of her works: “I favored the gold color because it helps the individual who observes it to refocus, it helps to give a vertical look towards spirituality and has an antidepressant effect. The subjects portray flowers and plants made with saturated pastel colors: I believe that there is nothing that contributes to serenity like the feeling of immersing oneself in a natural context in the middle of a spring or summer season, despite being inside the walls of a Hospice . This work had an even deeper meaning on a personal level: last September I lost my father right inside a structure like this. When it was time to give him the final farewell I found myself in a room that caused bad feelings and which contributed to add discomfort to an already particularly difficult moment. Only two days later I received the call from the IOR , so I think there is a very important red thread between my loss and these works. It was nice to have had the chance to realize what I wanted to see inside the room where I said goodbye to my father. I used panels that recalled those found in places of worship, for an immersion in the spirituality without religious preclusions of those who want to find some peace inside the room “.

At the Lugo hospice the artist’s new panels: “I painted it as I wanted it to be the room where I said goodbye to my father”