ABSTRACT
The aim of this chapter is to present our combined experience of providing art therapy to terminally ill cancer patients in a hospice in Rishikesh, Northern India. Central to this subject, we look at what India and the West can learn from each other in the current field of hospice and palliative care. We will begin by describing the hospice where this work took place and include a brief overview of the current landscape of palliative care in India. We will then compare the role of art in Indian culture in contrast to the West, with a focus on Rishikesh. We will look at the complexities involved in relation to the cultural context of the work and reflect upon the challenges we faced in our attempt to provide a culturally sensitive art therapy service. This will include a critical reflection on our own cultural conditioning from the perspective of being white and Western. Finally, we will include examples of how we approached interweaving both Eastern and Western narratives within our work. This is presented in the form of three short sections: the first describes a partnership project between St Christopher’s Hospice in London and Ganga Prem Hospice in Rishikesh; the second presents the work we underwent when providing art therapy during home visits; and the third includes two vignettes that detail the power and impact of art-making during bereavement events held at the hospice.
