Angela Rumble

Angela Rumble studied Fine Art at KIAD Canterbury and gained her MA in 1999. She originally trained as a dentist and still works part time in general practice. She continues to combine the two fields and this experience is reflected in the subject matter of her artwork.

Much of this work investigates the relationship between doctor and patient. Using images taken from medical textbooks the paintings seek to question the way in which medical models of representation have traditionally excluded images of equality and emancipation. Of necessity such images exclude any hint of personality and it is this sense of alteration when placed in the role of patient which fascinates and intrigues her.

The medical photograph is impersonal in nature. This image is copied and distorted mechanically before the individuality and unpredictability of the painting process is begun. This stands as a metaphor for the processing of the patient by the medical establishment and the loss of individuality which results as the person is seen as the sum 0f their symptoms, an interesting specimen.

By reintroducing (as the title) the diagnosis which defines the person, she means to provoke the question as to how much or how little can be ascertained from looking at the face in different contexts and how labels affect the attitude of the viewer.