Nic Compton | INTERVENTION

17 – 27 July 2025

Intervention is a collection of works that emerged after having open heart surgery in late 2023.  For months after the heart operation, I could only lift less than five kilograms and as a sculptor accustomed to working with heavy materials this was a frustrating prospect.

Being able to lift a pen and a paintbrush led me to create self-portraits and draw the power tools I could no longer use. The portraits surprised me with the diverse ways I could see and paint myself. It became a form of self-discovery, allowing me to explore multiple aspects of who I am.

The resulting body of work is a reflection on the experience of open-heart surgery and my interpretation of this intervention. While this type of surgery is not uncommon in contemporary Australia, the operation can change you both physically and emotionally.

Having needles and tubes entering your body to take fluid out and pump liquid in is a surreal experience. I am extremely grateful for medical science for the new valve, for pain control and the expertise of all the medical staff that has given me this second chance.

The sculpture ‘toxin’ is an interpretation of how poisoned my blood felt and how vulnerable, both physically and emotionally I felt. At the same time feeling even more thankful for life!

The paintings and drawings speak of how I was feeling at the time, uneven and disconnected.

Thanks to Kath Broderick for nursing me back to health, a big job, and a call out to friends who also came to my aid- Matt Parker, Bruce Abbott, Sharyn Egan, Louise Ainsworth, Simon Gilby, Claire Bailey and many others who helped me get well.

Thanks to my local doctor in York who insisted I have some tests, and then insisted I have some more, to my cardiologist and surgeons, nurses and staff at Fiona Stanley Hospital. It is a great gift you bring through this intervention- life!