A Life Cut Short

Art honors DNA chemist, raises ovarian cancer awareness

Art honors DNA chemist, raises ovarian cancer awareness

PROVIDED BY WYLLIE O HAGAN

European artists Denise Wyllie and Clare O'Hagan used a variety of different media, as illustrated in this print, to bring to life Rosalind Franklin's X-ray photo of DNA.

In the 1950s, Rosalind Franklin, a young British chemist, helped pave the way to the modern understanding of DNA, the tiny part of each cell that carries genetic information. Her work included one of the first X-ray photos of DNA, which revealed its intricate double-helix structure. But she died of ovarian cancer at 37 before she could complete her research.

James Watson and Francis Crick eventually would win a Nobel prize for their discovery of DNA, while Franklin's role was relegated to a footnote in science history. A pair of European artists inspired by her DNA images are working to boost her legacy and raise awareness of the disease that took her life.

The Center for Women this week will sponsor an exhibit of Clare O'Hagan and Denise Wyllie's "Rosalind Franklin: The Discovery of DNA," a mixed-media collection that brings Franklin's images to life through vivid, mesmerizing colors, at the Smith Killian Fine Art Gallery in downtown Charleston. Eighty percent of the proceeds from artwork sales during the exhibit will be donated to the S.C. Ovarian Cancer Foundation.

In preparation for their upcoming show in Charleston, O'Hagan and Wyllie, who are based in London, answered questions from The Post and Courier via e-mail. They are part of a long tradition of artists who have used their works to raise awareness about different diseases from Keith Haring's whimsical pop art to promote AIDS activism to the Breast Cancer Fund's traveling exhibit, "Art.Rage.Us."

Artists say they find their work can arouse empathy and interest in causes that might otherwise go unnoticed.

"Even without a deep knowledge of science, people respond to the aesthetics of the work," O'Hagan and Wyllie said via e-mail. "Art can reach different ages, background and cultures. People are generally visually literate and can understand and learn easily using art as a vehicle."

When it comes to ovarian cancer, activists say that education is crucial since there is no early detection tool for the disease, and symptoms often are misdiagnosed as gastrointestinal troubles or a normal part of a woman's monthly menstrual cycle. Although the disease is not common (about 1 in 55 women get it compared with 1 in 8 who are diagnosed with breast cancer), its toll is especially grim: Of the 275 women who are diagnosed with ovarian cancer in South Carolina each year, 200 die in the first year.

Symptoms include pelvic or abdominal pain, discomfort or bloating, frequent or urgent urination or change in bowel habits, and unexplained weight gain or loss. But these symptoms also can point to myriad other issues. Many women with ovarian cancer, for instance, see commercials for irritable bowel syndrome medications and go to the doctor thinking that's what's wrong with them, says Janet Rigdon, director of the S.C. Ovarian Cancer Foundation. And since the cancer can move quickly, time spent toying with a wrong diagnosis is precious.

"By the time you get where you need to be, you're late-stage," said Rigdon, who was diagnosed in 2000 and still is battling the disease. "In some women, it's very progressive: Three months can be life or death."

O'Hagan, who is an ovarian cancer survivor, felt that urgency and was inspired by fellow patients who fought passionately for research dollars to find ways to detect the cancer sooner and treat it better.

"When diagnosed with ovarian cancer," she said, "I really wanted to act out in anger, to make a big noise, to shout and scream and say, 'This disease is just awful, it kills women, listen to what I am saying.' "

Instead, she channeled her anger in a positive direction after learning Franklin's story in hopes of spreading the word about the disease. And ultimately, the time she spent creating these works alongside Wyllie proved healing.

"I am blessed that in my professional art practice I have the tools to express myself in an engaging manner," O'Hagan said. "Directing my personal experience of ovarian cancer outside of myself, out of my own body and onto the image of another woman — for all women — was liberating and life-enhancing."

Reach Holly Auer at 937-5560 or hauer@postandcourier.com.