Mural lost in upgrade

Ena McIntosh with the emergency department waiting room mural that is set to be decomissioned.

An Indigenous mural painted on a wall at Warwick Hospital will be commemorated before being decommissioned to make way for a $3 million emergency department upgrade.
The artwork, currently located in the Warwick Hospital Emergency Department waiting room, was painted by internationally acclaimed local Indigenous artist Colin Wightman – now deceased – assisted by Ena McIntosh and Joanne Duncan in 2000.
The mural will be ceremonially decommissioned before being photographed, framed and redisplayed in the upgraded emergency department after construction has been completed.
Warwick Hospital director of nursing Anita Bolton said the artwork had brought immeasurable enjoyment and value to patients and visitors over the years.
“We explored all options, but as the mural is painted directly onto the concrete wall of the existing emergency department wall it cannot be salvaged, other than to be photographed and redisplayed,” Ms Bolton said.
“We are sad to see the original artwork decommissioned, but we are dedicated to preserving it in photographic form for generations to come.”
Artist Ena McIntosh said the mural was initiated by the Darling Downs Hospital and Health Service, which approached artist Colin Wightman to paint the mural.
The Warwick Hospital Emergency Department currently treats between 50 to 70 people per day, with the planned $3 million upgrade designed to increase capacity while improving patient flow and working conditions for staff.
Preliminary works are expected to start later this year, followed by construction commencing in 2018.