Paintings at the Ottawa Heart Institute meant to brighten the lives of patients seem to have caused alarm rather than solace.

The paintings included five portraits by Shirley Brown called The Queens that were rented from the federal Art Bank.

The gorilla painting was reinstalled in a more remote part of the hospital.
(CBC)

"The areas where they were installed was a relatively dark area," said Victoria Henry, director of Art Bank. "The whites of [the] eyes are very strong. There is a creepiness in the eyes following you."

Anecdotal reports and e-mails arrived at the institute within 48 hours from people complaining the paintings made them feel tense. Doctors and nurses noticed patients were more agitated while waiting to have their blood pressure tested.

Another piece by Paul Butler had a line across it that said, "Getting there is half the fun," but it didn't work in the context of patients heading into an operating room, Henry said. It too was moved.

Paintings called The Queens were considered creepy by some, says Victoria Henry.
(CBC)

A work depicting a gorilla was reinstalled in a less prominent location, the entrances to a set of washrooms.

Art in hospitals should be safe, said Sharon Mintz, an art therapist.

"No pussycats playing bridge, dogs playing poker or Elvis on velvet," said Mintz. "But there are a lot more comfortable works of art, watercolours, softer pastels, something that will inspire relaxation in a situation like that."

Art that blends in is mundane, argued Dr. Robert Roberts, head of the institute.

"We won't always get it right, but if we keep the people engaged, right or wrong or indifferent, that will be our major guiding point," said Roberts.

The Art Bank and the institute recently surveyed about 100 people, including employees, patients and visitors, to try to strike the right balance.

The goal is to help patients to relax while giving staff something to talk about and enjoy, Henry said.

The Queens have been shelved. 

Results of the experiment in art therapy will be presented at the Society for the Arts in Healthcare conference in Nashville, Tenn., in April 2007.