SALA Artist - Jenni

Artist profile

The impetus for this collection came from the sad fact that if I’m well enough to go on holiday, I will still spend a lot of that time in bed.  Back in 2010, I started taking photos of “The view from my bed”. Mardi and Julianne kindly whittled my 12 photos down to 5, grateful thanks as I couldn’t choose.  I think that these photos are emblematic of the way people with ME/CFS miss out on life. We are often looking out at others having fun and yearning to get out and about. I realise that I am luckier than many with ME/CFS that I have been able to go on holidays in the years when I’ve been well enough.

I had a very normal childhood playing tennis and basketball (netball), hiking, swimming and continued into my high school years and during tertiary study but became ill in my mid 20’s. Not unusually, my ME/CFS went undiagnosed for 15 years. In that time, I thought that I was imagining my symptoms and blamed myself.  I was also teaching, playing hockey, volunteering, having children, losing my last parent and was also looking after my in-laws.  In the early 80’s, I was seriously unwell and I was diagnosed with depression – looking back it was a relapse and depression.

In ’87 I was diagnosed by Dr Kathleen Maros of Joslin.  I’d read an article in The Advertiser about the work she and another doctor were doing into the shapes of red blood cells in ME people.  She suggested the new ME society to me.  I rang and spoke to Lyn Drysdale, the first President and started to attend monthly meeting at the Aust. Mineral foundation at Glenside; from memory there were about 100 people every month. Lyn told me she was talking to me from her bed which I thought was pretty weird; of course, in time, I often did and still do my volunteer work, family organisation and relaxing activities from bed. Genealogy is my great passion and I can work on it in bed if I have to and now have 178 posts on my GenieJen blog telling the stories of our ancestors.

A year before I started studying for my Graduate Diploma in Library and Information Science.  It took some years as I had to have 2 or 3 years off in the middle. 

I worked part time after the children arrived (so I could rest on the alternate days) as a Teacher librarian and later as a hospital librarian up to 2007 when I crashed so badly, I haven’t worked since. I still rail at my restrictions and feel like ‘;m missing out as there are so many other things I would like to do in the community. But I’m also grateful that I have seen my children grow up into the fabulous people they are.

So I’ve been a member for most of the years since ’87 except for some in the 90’s. From 2007, I became actively involved as National Sec for a year. After that I mainly volunteered from home during relapses and I’ve held a number of roles, incl. Seminar Co-ordinator, Committee member, Membership officer. Talking Point, Assistant Editor and eBulletin co-editor.  I haven’t been active since about mid 2014 as I’ve turned to my other passion, genealogy and my local Historical Society where I’m Treasurer and was Oral History co-ordinator for nearly 7 years. This year, I have added in an hour at the community centre nearby supporting a children’s program.

Adelaide, South Australia

Gallery

Click on the images to open the gallery, click again to zoom in. 

A description of each image appears at the bottom of this page.

Artist Comments

The impetus for this collection came from the sad fact that if I’m well enough to go on holiday, I will still spend a lot of that time in bed.  Back in 2010, I started taking photos of “The view from my bed”. Mardi and Julianne kindly whittled my 12 photos down to 5, grateful thanks as I couldn’t choose.  I think that these photos are emblematic of the way people with ME/CFS miss out on life. We are often looking out at others having fun and yearning to get out and about. I realise that I am luckier than many with ME/CFS that I have been able to go on holidays in the years when I’ve been well enough. These photos show the views that the artist has experienced, from within a bedroom, while travelling in Australia. 

1. This photo was taken in 2011 when we were staying at Brighton Caravan park; our cabin was up on a cliff above the rest of the park and so from my bed, I could see the stunning blue sea over the rooftops of other cabins.  I was hoping I might be well enough to get onto the beach later.
2. This photo was taken in 2015 while staying on the Brisbane River and I could see the outdoor setting on the balcony and beyond that the dull blue of the river.  I loved watching the ferries moving up and down the river.
3. This is the view I look at every day and was taken in 2012; I love my garden and being able to keep an eye on it even when I’m not well enough to go and potter is calming. I see that the wattle is in flower so it must have been taken in August, such a cheery display in the gloomy winter weather.
4. This 2011 photo was taken while visiting friends who live above Lake Macquarie, NSW; I’m sitting in bed looking down at the gorgeous Lake Macquarie annoyed that I have to withdraw and rest so I can join everyone later in the day. But I did enjoy watching the boats on the water.
5. This 2010 photo was taken while visiting Melbourne and you can see the white picket side gate, the neighbour’s roof and a beautiful blue sky; the houses are very close together so it’s almost only a picture of the window.

Description of images

Image 1: A window with vertical blinds overlooks a deck with white furniture, a blue ocean and a two tall green coastal pine trees.

Image 2: A window with horizontal mini blinds and an open door overlooks a sunny deck with a glass balustrade and glass table and chairs with towels thrown over. Past the deck is a beautiful waterfront in Brisbane.

Image 3: An Australian suburban 1970's brown window with security mesh and horizontal miniblinds looks out on a sunny garden with gum trees and green plants.

Image 4: An oversized window with vertical blinds looks out across Lake Macquarie past a large verdant palm.

Image 5:  A smaller window with horizontal miniblinds shows only a sliver of blue sky and a white picket fence gate as well as two roof overhangs.

Copyright of all content (images and text) belongs to the artist credited. All work is used here with permission and shall not be used by any other organisation or individual for any purpose or in any way without express written permission of the artist.