Bupa turns personal health stories into one of Europe’s largest hand-painted murals

Bupa has partnered with Story Studio, Global Street Art and PrettyGreen to produce Express Your Health, a global campaign exploring the link between creativity and health, anchored by a 773 square metre hand-painted mural on London’s Southbank.

Created for the debut of Global Street Art’s new Waterloo Bridge Mural site on the side of Rambert’s building, the artwork was produced collaboratively by 21 artists and storytellers from around the world, each contributing a personal health story.

Topics covered include fertility, sickle cell, diabetes, anxiety, ageing and grief, brought together in what the brand describes as a first-of-its-kind commission.

The campaign builds on Bupa’s existing Let’s Talk Health platform, which encourages people to share health experiences more openly.

Contributors, assembled by PrettyGreen, include Olympic diver Tom Daley, artists Sophie Tea, Yinka Ilori and Coco Davez, and AFL player Cody Weightman.

Bupa research found that while 85% of people agree creativity supports mental and physical health, half are not making time for it, citing tiredness, lack of inspiration and time as the main barriers.

Fiona Bosman, Group Brand Director at Bupa, said: “When people are given the space to share their health experiences, it can be transformative.”

Dan Jude, Founder and CEO at Story Studio, added: “The positive impact of creativity as a way to express yourself when words are difficult is hugely overlooked.”