The £10,000 Alexandra Reinhardt Memorial Award

In 2005, the charity Paintings in Hospitals received a grant from The Max Reinhardt Charitable Trust to set up and run an annual artist-in-residence project to be based at a different National Health Service hospital each year for the next five years. The Award, which is worth £10,000, has been established as a memorial to Alexandra Reinhardt, an artist who died aged 43 in 2004, having battled with a rare blood disorder all her life.

Alexandra knew what it was like to spend long periods in hospital, never to be free from the next appointment. From her unique position of being both patient and artist she felt a great deal could be done to make hospitals more comforting and uplifting. She longed to be recognised as an artist. The Award aims to not only provide an opportunity for patients and artists to interact in the making of an artwork but to inspire and highlight artists who deserve great recognition and respect.

Paintings in Hospitals (PiH) was founded in 1959 to provide original works of art for display in hospitals and other healthcare facilities to improve the healthcare environment experienced by patients, visitors and staff. The PiH collection now includes over 4,000 works of art on loan to more than 250 hospitals, hospices and healthcare centres in England, Ireland and Wales.