Freya Najade
Along the Hackney Canal, 2023
Framed Photography
CT Scanner, Imaging Department, Newham Hospital
Freya Najade has brought images of flora and fauna found in the east London Marshes to a newly built CT Scanner Unit at Newham Hospital.
Incorporating both existing and newly commissioned works, the installation of photographs track the artist’s daily walks along the Hackney Canal, which leads directly to Newham Hospital via the new Greenway Development.
Najade is drawn to the unexpected beauty of the east London Marshes, which serve as a place of quiet discovery for many city dwellers. She notes: “during each walk there is always something which surprises me, or which I discovered anew…such as a corner in the woods where I had never been before.”
Like the marshes themselves, which provide a break from the noise and crowd of the surrounding city, we hope that these works offer a moment of calm and respite for patients. Najade’s project seeks to connect Newham patients to the abundant wildlife sites found nearby–encouraging them to explore local green spaces and benefit from nature’s restorative and healing effects.
About the artist
Freya Najade is a photographer living and working in London and Hamburg. Her work has been exhibited internationally and published widely in The Guardian, The Times, and the British Journal of Photography, among many others. Najade is the also the author of The Hackney Marshes, published by Hoxton Mini Press in 2016, from which a few images are found in this photography installation.
