Arts for Health MK Collection Development Officer Jackie Sarafopoulos

Looking Through Within by Paul Frank Lewthwaite

Looking Through Within (2009) Painted Steel, Paul Frank Lewthwaite from the Milton Keynes University Hosptial Art Collection

In the next instalment of our Twenty for Twenty series, we ask our new Collections Development officer Jackie to select an artwork from the Milton Keynes University Hospital Art Collection.

Which work in The Collection have you chosen to talk about?

For the Twenty for Twenty project, I have chosen Looking Within by Paul Lewthwaite as my inspiration

When and how did you first see it?
I started with Arts for Health MK in September 2025 and with around 400 artworks in The Collection, there was a lot to get to know in preparation for the New City Collection Project. Paul Lewthwaite’s sculpture stood out early on and quickly became a starting point for our paediactrics project with Eek and Wild Contemporary Dance Company.

What first interested or attracted you to this artwork?

At MKUH, Looking Within draws inspiration from the shape of an endoscope — a medical instrument used in diagnosis and treatment. Through flowing steel curves and vibrant colours, Paul reimagines this clinical tool as something warm, expressive, and full of vitality. The resulting sculpture offers a moment of calm and contemplation within the hospital, reminding staff, patients, and visitors of the strength and connection found through shared creative experience.

Born in 1969 on the Isle of Man, Paul Lewthwaite is an internationally recognised sculptor known for transforming everyday materials such as steel and timber into poetic, fragmented forms. His works often resemble familiar objects, yet resist simple interpretation, inviting us to reflect on themes of memory, resilience, and renewal.

Do you remember how seeing this work made you feel?

For me, Looking Within represents everything that Arts for Health Milton Keynes stands for: collaboration, creativity, and care. It reminds us that art has the power to support wellbeing — helping us to look not only within ourselves, but also towards one another, with empathy, hope, and understanding.

In general, what kind of impact do you think seeing art at MKUH has on your experience of being on the hospital site?

For me this sculpture perfectly captures the life-affirming value of art — how it connects people, sparks reflection, and tells a shared story. Designed in close collaboration with staff and patients at Milton Keynes University Hospital (MKUH), Looking Within embodies the collective spirit and creativity that make art in healthcare so meaningful.


Contributor: Jackie Sarafopoulos

As Collections Development Officer at Arts for Health Milton Keynes, I’m currently working on the New City Collection Project, generously funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund (NHLF). Having worked in the arts and culture sector for over 30 years, it has long been an ambition of mine to engage with an art collection rooted in a healthcare environment — a setting where creativity, care, and community naturally come together.