Teen's Middlesbrough hospital drawings picked for Royal Academy show

Cristiana Borg's drawings have been selected for online display by the Royal Academy of Arts

A teenager who used drawing as an "escape" in hospital has had her work exhibited by the Royal Academy of Arts.

Cristiana Borg was a patient at Middlesbrough's James Cook University Hospital during the pandemic where she was treated for an eating disorder.

Using pens and art paper received as a gift, she detailed the views from her window, the ward and hospital cafe.

The 14-year-old's drawings are being displayed online as part of the academy's Young Artists' Summer Show.

Cristiana, of London, had been visiting her grandparents on Teesside in October when she was admitted to hospital after becoming so unwell she almost collapsed.

Cristiana's hospital bed was among the detailed images she drew

Having suffered from anxiety during the coronavirus lockdown, she had restricted her eating and lost more than three stone.

She said drawing while in hospital had been her "escape" from medical check-ups and the images provided "a sense of purpose and success as people enjoyed them".

Pictures of the WHSmith shop and the hospital cafe had documented "happier spaces" where Cristiana said she would be taken "to meet family and friends who helped me feel more connected to real life and were so important in supporting me in my recovery".

The view from her bedside window also provided inspiration

After being discharged in November and receiving follow-up care from the Middlesbrough Eating Disorder Team, the teenager later returned to school in London and showed her drawings to her art teacher who suggested she enter the academy's summer show.

Cristiana's mother, Suzannah Clarke, said being selected from more than 20,000 entries had been a "surprise and delight".

"When we were told she was a winner it really gave her a boost, just at the right time.

"Particular thanks must go to James Cook Hospital and the staff, as well as to the Middlesbrough Eating Disorder Team who were both exceptional."

The hospital shop reminded her of happy meetings with friends and family