Linear Meditations is a mindful exhibition featuring the works of influential British abstract artist Wilhelmina Barns-Graham.

Representing water in a variety of forms, from glaciers to seas, this exhibition interprets the fluid movement of energy and lines. Having spent much of her life near the sea, from her birthplace of Fife to her adopted home of St Ives, Wilhelmina Barns-Graham captures the meditative qualities of water to both calm and captivate.

We specifically designed Linear Meditations for care settings: to enhance the care environment and to improve patient and staff wellbeing. The exhibition toured three healthcare spaces at Charing Cross Hospital, St Mary’s Hospital and Hammersmith Hospital throughout 2018 and 2019 and moved on to support expectant mothers at Milton Keynes University Hospital in 2020.

To help people benefit from Wilhelmina's artworks, Linear Meditations also includes a series of mindfulness exercises in text and audio. Practising mindfulness can help with mental health and wellbeing by reducing stress and anxiety.

While many of us are in isolation, we want to offer a way for everyone to enjoy the Linear Meditations exhibition and to explore the benefits of art and mindfulness. Below you will find the artworks featured in Linear Meditations and we invite you to observe your thoughts and feelings as you view the works and read/listen to the mindfulness activities.

Note: We suggest finding somewhere comfortable to sit while you view the artworks. Click the SoundCloud play button below the artwork you are viewing to listen to a mindfulness exercise. We recommend using headphones to listen to the mindfulness audio for your chosen artworks.

Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, Glacier Encounter, 1976

Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, Music of the Sea, 1976

Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, Orange Sky 2, 1981

Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, Sea Sound, 1979

Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, Sea Music, 1988

Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, Line Series, 1983

Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, Eye of the Storm, 1980

Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, Sea Sound Series No.8, 1980

Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, West Sands (St Andrews) July, 1981

Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, 8 Lines No.5, 1986-1995

Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, (Winter Movement) Desert, 1979

Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, Untitled No.37, 1980-1988

Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, Glacier Field, 1978

Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, Formation 1, 1978

Text instructions for the mindfulness exercises can be downloaded below:

• Mindful Feeling
• Mindful Listening
• Mindful Observation
• Mindful Breathing

More about Linear Meditations

In 2018 Paintings in Hospitals partnered with the Wilhelmina Barns-Graham Trust and Imperial Health Charity seeking an emerging curator to develop a new hospital touring exhibition. Briana Oliver was selected to lead the project. Briana completed her MA in Design History at the Royal College of Art in 2016.

Find out more about Paintings in Hospitals exhibitions and projects...

All artwork images courtesy of the Wilhelmina Barns-Graham Trust.