Tattoo artist creates stunning tribute to Amged El-Hawrani
A tattoo artist has created a beautiful, bespoke work of art as a tribute to Mr Amged El-Hawrani for his team at Queen’s Hospital Burton.
Mr El-Hawrani, who was Associate Clinical Director and Ear, Nose and Throat Consultant here at the Trust, sadly died on 28 March after contracting COVID-19. His colleagues in his department at Queen’s Hospital Burton wanted to pay tribute to him, and after seeing the work of artist Adam Foster on social media, they requested a bespoke piece in his memory.
Marie Kyles, Staff Nurse in the Ear, Nose and Throat department, said: “Myself and my colleague, Sonia Maxim, worked with Adam to get the piece commissioned as Sonia has had a few tattoos done by him. He has been offering to do work in exchange for donations to NHS charities, so we thought it apt to approach him. 
“He has done an amazing job at coming up with this picture. He has also given it to us free of charge, so we’re incredibly thankful.”
Adam Foster, the artist behind the stunning creation, said that when lockdown began, he wanted to keep in an “artistic routine”, and has been creating portraits and pictures for people in recent weeks.
He said: “Sonia has been a client of mine for tattoos, and saw my portraits and approached me about creating a big picture with the team and Mr El-Hawrani. She told me that the team had never been on a night out together, so we decided to make the picture look like they were out at a meal having a good time.
“In total, it took me 14 hours to finish the piece, which I did digitally on an iPad, and it’s been printed and framed in A3 and framed. I create artwork for a living, so to do a piece like this is people letting me into their personal lives, so it is nice to bring so light into the darkness at this time.” 
Marie added that herself and Sonia wanted to keep the picture a surprise for as long as possible, and when they finally revealed the art to their team, it was an emotional occasion:
“We had a lot of tears. Everyone loves it and it’s the perfect way to remember Amged who was such a warm and friendly person. We’ve had the picture framed and are now just looking for the perfect place to hang it as a permanent tribute to our friend, Amged.”
Artist Adam, who usually works as a tattoo artist at Nomad Tattoo and Retail in Swadlincote, has been inundated with requests for pieces after his work gathered traction on social media, and he is continuing to donate all proceeds to the Derby and Burton Hospitals Charity.
He said: “Since I started sharing the work, I’ve had so many requests and I’m now drawing up to 18 hours a day to keep on top of them. When I finish a piece, I ask for the client to donate my fee straight to the Hospital Charity so that it can go towards helping our local hospitals at this time.
“It was lovely to be a part of creating this piece and a real honour, so I’m glad that the team are happy with the finished product.”
Picture captions
- (left to right) Mr Jack Limbrick, Mr Amged El-Hawrani, Mr Emmanuel Diakos, Sonia Maxim, Marie Kyles and Joanne Stockwell.
- Adam Foster (far right) and his family