The six works were donated by the Department of Education and Westmead Children’s Hospital’s joint ‘Operation Art’ program, which invites school students from across the state to submit artworks for the project.

Judges then select 80 works to be distributed to hospitals.

“Kids make all the work,” Operation Art project officer Heidi Windeisen said.

“Their brief is just to make something happy and cheerful.”

Daniel Riger from Westmead Children’s Hospital said artworks can be part of a patient’s healing process.

“There is a proven link between art and healing - it’s a form of distraction for patients and their parents,” he said. 

It’s the first time Lithgow Hospital has received works from Operation Art. Just to make the delivery more special, one of the works has come back home.

‘Bailed Up’ by Zig Zag Primary School student Jessica Alexander was one of the 80 works selected for Operation Art’s collection, and was chosen by Ms Windeisen to return to Lithgow Hospital.

Hospital director Jill Marjoram said the only other artworks specifically on display for children visiting the hospital were paintings by Pixie O’Harris salvaged from the walls of the Old Lithgow Hospital.

“I think it’s great,” she said.

“I think it’s lovely and I think an exhibition space is probably something we could start to create here.

“They’ll definitely be in a space where children are, to make it more happy.”

A collection of an additional fifty ‘Operation Art’ pieces will be on display at the Blue Mountains Cultural Centre until August 19.