Medical Advocacy Mural Project

Regina Holliday's work emerges from the artist's own experience: her 39-year-old husband was diagnosed with metastatic kidney cancer on March 27 2009 and died of the disease on June 17 2009. She contends that he probably had the disease for years, but could not afford the tests that would have explained his symptoms. (As a couple, the Hollidays reportedly worked 5 jobs for years and yet were unable to afford health insurance). What emerged from her experience is public artwork, such as a 20ft (6m)-high mural showing her husband on his deathbed, designed to draw attention to what the artist perceives as the failings of the American health system. Another mural, called "73 cents", references how much a person pays per page for his or her medical record in the state of Maryland (which is adjacent to the District of Columbia, where Holliday's murals are on display).

Holliday's art advocacy strategy is reflected in these words from the Medical Advocacy Project blog: "I am painting because it is the best way I know that can make a difference. I will paint our sorrow on a wall for all to see. It is hard to look away. It makes you think. It makes you question. The scariest thing to the status-quo is an electorate that is thinking and asking questions. I am as grassroots as it comes. There is just me on a 20 foot ladder donated by my church. I am using paint brushes I have had for 17 years. I am applying acrylic paint (paid for by donations of friends and strangers) on a wall donated by a gas station."

Based on the very public nature of her work, Holliday's message has garnered attention, not only in the US but beyond. As she writes in her blog: "I once said this would be a brush stroke heard around the world. I did not know how true those words would be....I have received emails from an international audience asking questions about health reform. This problem resounds around the globe. I found out that it costs approx. 88 cents to get your medical record in Germany. Lack of access to records appears to be an international problem. This week many lovely people came by to see the mural....They came to see the mural in person after hearing about it on TV. I asked them to spread the word. Please tell everyone you know about the need for health care reform. If we all act as a positive voice supporting reform, our harmony will drown out the discordant sound of the detractors. There are many aspects to health care reform. If we engage in civil dialogue, we will find common ground."

Rights.