After being diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2017, artist Lexi Sargeant decided to undergo neurosurgery and radiation. "I still remember going in for the appointment to have my head measured, receiving the bright green mask and the matching green 'Radiation Passport' — a color scheme tied to the cancer center that became a permanent reminder of what I was going through," she tells Popsugar. "I knew from the start that I didn't want to simply dispose of the mask; it represented one of the most profound times of my life."
The idea for her radiation mask art came years later, and was largely inspired by her health journey and a meaningful gift from a family member. "My mum gave me a birthday bouquet filled with beautiful Australian native flowers. I preserved the bouquet by hanging the blooms upside down to dry on coat hangers, keeping them as a reminder of love and resilience," Sargeant says. "One day, I decided to combine those two symbols - the mask and the preserved flowers - by weaving the flowers through the holes of the radiation mask. What had once been a cold and clinical object transformed into an art piece, representing strength and survival every time I look at it."
