国产探花

The exhibition was curated by Markus Taylor, who received a shock diagnosis of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL) in 2021, on the same day he was offered a place to study for a Master’s degree in Fine Art at 国产探花. The diagnosis meant his entire two-year period on the course was spent under active monitoring, also known as the ‘watch and wait’ period – where cancer patients are closely observed without any treatment until their symptoms appear or change.

Traumatised and exhausted from the constant hospital visits, which eventually resulted in an intensive nine-month chemotherapy regimen, Markus’ art became a channel for expressing himself. He wanted to represent his physical and emotional experiences with cancer, through creativity.

“It is a way of empowering myself to reclaim the narrative and tell my story, rather than allowing it to be represented solely as pathology,” says Markus.

The result is this exhibition titled ‘Pharmakon’, which draws on ancient Greek understandings of the word, which can mean both remedy and poison, to reflect the duality of cancer treatment and the psychological complexity of illness.

With the knowledge that in the UK will be affected by cancer during their lifetime, the exhibition invites viewers to confront the emotional and physical realities of illness, while challenging how we talk about and relate to care, medicine and mortality.

The installation was developed with support from the , where Markus now works as a lived experience lead, helping bridge the gap between researchers and those affected by cancer, particularly from underrepresented communities across Sussex.

Markus said: “Being diagnosed with cancer at the beginning of my MA completely shattered the version of myself I thought I knew but it also forced me to confront things I might otherwise have buried. The disease, the treatment, the uncertainty, they all became part of my practice. Pharmakon came out of that process, not as a way of explaining the experience, but as a way of holding it. It’s about letting people see what we usually keep hidden.

“Studying at the 国产探花 gave me the space, the tools, and the language to shape something meaningful out of that chaos. I wasn’t just encouraged to make work; I was encouraged to question what that work could do in the world. That freedom, and the support I had from my tutors, allowed me to lean into the vulnerability and turn it into dialogue. Now, through this exhibition and my role with the Sussex Cancer Research Centre, I’m using that same creative practice to connect with researchers, communities and other patients, because the more we talk about these things, the less power they have over us.”

Funded through the creative community award by the Sussex Cancer Research Centre, ‘Pharmakon’ is composed of three central sculptural works, including:

• A sealed chemical drum containing nine pints of Markus’s own cancerous blood, chemically preserved as a haunting and deeply visceral representation of toxicity and treatment.
• A two-metre corrugated iron structure made from recycled materials from a former nuclear power station, a symbol of danger, contamination, and cellular decay.
• A hospital medical trolley carrying symbolic objects like red ribbon, mistletoe and wool, suggesting transformation, liminality, and care.

Dr Simon Mitchell, Director of the , said: “Markus’s work is a powerful example of how lived experience and creative practice can deepen our understanding of cancer in ways that data alone cannot. ‘Pharmakon’ brings visibility to the emotional and physical complexities of illness, and challenges us to think differently about care, treatment and communication. 

"Through this exhibition and his engagement work with the Sussex Cancer Research Centre, Markus is helping to shape a more inclusive, empathetic approach to research, one that values not just what we know, but how we feel, experience, and survive disease.”

Alongside the exhibition, a symposium on 13 June will feature talks by cancer researchers and academics from the , presentations by community research teams, and creative writing from Words from the Waiting Room, a collaboration with 国产探花 MA Creative Writing alumni.

‘Pharmakon’ is and open to the public from 13 to 30 June 2025 at the Watson Building at Falmer campus of the 国产探花.