Lucy’s Wish
Lucy’s Wish
How do you paint a picture of something people find difficult to look at? Carleen Gallagher, the mother of Lucy (who lives with harlequin ichthyosis), shared her thoughts and photos on how Lucy’s life is affected.
‘I can’t throw everything at it,’ I said (nicely I hoped). And then one afternoon, after days of consideration, I rapidly pieced the idea together – but whose idea was it?
One that didn’t exist without all the contributors; the scientists Edel and Elena, the parent Carleen, the patient Lucy (11), the brother Harry (5), and the artist (me). Really, the concept was Carleen’s, and she explained how ‘the shock factor came when we welcomed our second child who was unaffected. The difference in our children’s skin was so upsetting.’
I hope this painting can convey the skin disease without the shock, and the familial love which is humbling and beautiful, despite the enormous challenges that skin disease presents.
Artist – Andy Dakin
Andy Dakin is a figurative artist from Cambridge who paints portraits, cityscapes and interior scenes. Graduating with a Fine Art degree in Manchester in 1991, Dakin then worked in media, taking thousands of photographs in the process.
He returned to painting and drawing in 2013, since then achieving ‘Visitor’s Favourite’ 6 times with the Cambridge Drawing Society and exhibiting with the Royal Society of Portrait Painters and the New English Art Club.
Prof Edel O’Toole
Professor of Molecular Dermatology
Dr Elena Giusto
Postdoctoral Research Assistant, Queen Mary University of London
We are studying harlequin ichthyosis, a severe genetic skin disorder causing skin scaling and redness. We are researching drugs called JAK inhibitors in a three-dimensional model of harlequin ichthyosis. JAK inhibitors are currently prescribed for atopic eczema in the UK and we hope that in the future they may be repurposed for severe ichthyosis.