Artist Thomas Croft, at a loss as to what to paint during lockdown, put out an offer on Instagram on 4 April 2020, saying he would paint a free portrait for the first National Health Service (NHS) worker to reply:[1][2][3] I'm offering a free oil portrait to the first NHS frontline worker to DM me, I will work in lockdown from a photo you can provide me with.
#portraitsfornhsheroes 🎨💚 -This led to him painting a portrait in oils of Manchester Royal Infirmary Accident & Emergency nurse Harriet Durkin, wearing PPE, including a 3M face mask, a Guardian visor, gloves and a gown.
[1] However, Croft received so many requests that he eventually put 500 NHS workers in touch with professional artists, who volunteered to paint them.
[5] The Net Gallery installed fine art prints by fifteen artists at Fitzrovia Chapel and then scanned the work to create a virtual walkthrough.
The entire process was completed in a single day, following strict government social distancing guidelines, and was organised in support of NHS Charities Together.