The Lens of Hope by Aysha

Aysha, 24, became seriously unwell just before her 18^th birthday and was diagnosed with several severe long-term illnesses. When she was bedbound for months, she used to stare at photos of riverbanks, murmurations of starlings and botanical collections of flowers. She could clearly hear the wind rattling the reeds, see the birds in the fading evening light, feel the delicate edge of hellebore petals between her fingers. The photos made each day trapped indoors more bearable for her, enabling her to hold onto hope and remember the outside world.

“Images can be incredibly powerful and allow the observer to interpret or take away what they need to from the art itself. Quite often I can struggle to articulate exactly what it is I need to say, but an image can encompass all the complicated feelings that can coexist at any one time.”