ProMedica Toledo Children’s Hospital has unveiled a photography exhibit on its walls featuring children who are not defined by their disabilities.
Sponsored by the hospital’s Family Advisory Council, “Beyond the Frame” is a permanent installation in the main lobby of the facility.
Photographer Rick Guidotti speaks with Renee Ruth, one of the subjects of “Beyond the Frame,” a new permanent display at ProMedica Toledo Children’s Hospital. Toledo Free Press photo by Joel Sensenig
The display features 30 photographs of the hospital’s patients, families and staff, highlighting the concepts behind the hospital’s patient and family-centered care philosophy.
The shots were taken by New York City-based photographer Rick Guidotti, a former fashion photographer who now takes photos of children with genetic conditions and special healthcare needs for his company, Positive Exposure.
“I’ve had exhibits in Grand Central Station, the Museum of Natural History in [Washington] D.C., but this where finally, these photographs belong — in a children’s hospital,” Guidotti said at a Nov. 12 reception for the exhibit’s unveiling to the public. “These are kids that have had all kinds of challenges, but they’re kids, first and foremost. It’s overwhelming to see that on the walls.”
Positive Exposure’s mission is to change public perceptions of individuals living with disabilities.
Emily Rippe, ProMedica content specialist, said the exhibit is permanent but noted the photographs may be switched out occasionally, as hundreds of photographs were taken for the project.
Mary Borucki, chairperson of the Family Advisory Council, was instrumental in contacting Guidotti and helping to bring “Beyond the Frame” to Toledo. She and her son Jonah, who has a rare chromosome abnormality called 18q- syndrome, are featured in the exhibit.
Upon receiving word of her son’s diagnosis, Borucki — who has struggled with epilepsy herself — went to Google to the condition and was horrified by what she saw: images of naked, nameless babies with black bars over their faces; they were more identified by numbers than human beings.
“I felt like I had to grieve this child that I just had,” she said. “I knew he had this diagnosis, but I still just knew him as my son Jonah, and I thought he was perfect.”
It was then she found some images Guidotti had taken of other children with disabilities, giving her the hope she was desperately seeking. After seeing him speak at an event, she knew she wanted to bring him to Toledo to help people think about how they treat others, regardless of their genetic conditions or physical appearance.
“I wanted to just have people look at our children as valuable human beings that deserve to have that respect and dignity,” she said.
Each photograph includes a quote from the patient or a family member.
The photo of Mary and Jonah kissing is captioned with Mary’s words: “Despite Jonah’s many challenges, what sets him apart is his unwavering spirit and positive attitude. Together we are an unstoppable force of unconditional love and strength. I am my son’s interpreter of the world. He is counting on me and I will never let him down.”
Renee Ruth, an 18-year-old from Dana, Indiana, is also among the exhibit’s subjects.
“It’s really cool,” she said while gazing up at the close-up photograph of her face. “It’s on my bucket list to do modeling. I really look up to Rick. I like photographing eyes, so that’s why he photographed my eyes.”
Ruth’s piece reads: “I am always smiling and never give up no matter the obstacles. I live each day to the fullest. I am currently in my second year of college.”
Ruth, who has been coming to the hospital for two years, has dysautonomia, mitochondrial disease and Ehlers-Danlos syndrome. She wants to be a counselor for those with chronic, terminal and rare diseases.
For more on “Beyond the Frame,” visit www.promedicahealthconnect.org.
