For someone living with endometriosis, describing the disease can be difficult. A person may appear well while dealing with pelvic pain, fatigue, fertility concerns, repeated medical appointments, or disruptions to everyday life.
Most conversations about these experiences take place in healthcare settings. This September, a New York City exhibition is approaching the subject from a different direction: through art.
New York Gynecology Surgery and Endometriosis (NYGSE) is supporting FLARE: Illuminating Endometriosis, a three-day exhibition bringing artists and the endometriosis community together in New York City.
Image courtesy of FLARE via Instagram (@flare.endo).
An Endometriosis Exhibition Built Around Personal Experience
FLARE stands for Flourish in Life through Art & Resources for Endometriosis. Founded by artist, storyteller, and endometriosis advocate Priscilla Smith, the initiative explores how creative work can help people communicate experiences associated with chronic illness.
Its inaugural exhibition, Illuminating Endometriosis, will feature 33 artists representing 13 countries.
Their work includes painting, photography, clay, thread, print, collage, and other creative forms, offering different interpretations of chronic illness and endometriosis.
The exhibition will be held September 17–19, 2026, at The Sixth Floor Loft, 873 Broadway in New York City.
When Symptoms Cannot Be Seen
One challenge of endometriosis is the difference between what a patient experiences and what other people can observe.
Pelvic pain, painful periods, painful intercourse, bowel or bladder symptoms, fatigue, and fertility concerns may significantly affect someone’s life without producing an obvious outward sign.
Art offers a different way of communicating these experiences. Instead of explaining endometriosis through a clinical definition or anatomical diagram, artists can use color, texture, imagery, and form to express something that begins inside the body.
Art and Medicine Tell Different Parts of the Story
Medicine seeks to understand disease through evidence. Physicians evaluate symptoms, medical history, clinical findings, imaging when appropriate, and other information to determine what may be happening and what treatments should be considered.
Art serves a different purpose. It can communicate fear, frustration, uncertainty, resilience, or hope without attempting to diagnose or treat disease.
These perspectives can complement one another. Clinical care addresses the disease, while personal expression can help others understand how it may affect relationships, work, family plans, and everyday life.
A Global Collection Arrives in New York
With artists participating from 13 countries, visitors will encounter interpretations of endometriosis shaped by different backgrounds and personal experiences.
Bringing these works together in one New York exhibition provides an opportunity to see both the individuality of each person’s experience and concerns that may be shared across geographic and cultural boundaries.
Artists and artwork featured by FLARE ahead of the Illuminating Endometriosis exhibition. Image courtesy of FLARE via Instagram (@flare.endo).
More Than a Gallery Visit
FLARE has designed the September gathering as more than a traditional art exhibition.
Activities across the three days include exhibition viewing, performances, workshops, conversations, shared meals, and opportunities for members of the endometriosis community to connect.
The setting brings together people approaching endometriosis from different perspectives, including artists, patients, advocates, and healthcare professionals.
An artist may express an experience. A patient may recognize part of her own story. A healthcare professional may gain another perspective on what patients experience outside the examination room.
Why NYGSE Is Supporting FLARE
At NYGSE, much of our work focuses on the medical side of endometriosis: helping patients understand symptoms, providing informed evaluation, discussing treatment options, and offering specialized surgical care when appropriate.
But a patient’s experience does not begin and end with a medical appointment.
Endometriosis can affect everyday decisions, relationships, work, family planning, emotional well-being, and how someone understands her own body.
Supporting FLARE recognizes this broader experience and creates a point of connection between healthcare and the arts. For NYGSE, supporting the initiative is another way to stand alongside the wider endometriosis community while artists tell their own stories in their own medium.
FLARE: Illuminating Endometriosis Event Details
September 17–19, 2026
The Sixth Floor Loft
873 Broadway, Sixth Floor
New York, NY 10003
The exhibition features 33 artists from 13 countries, along with performances, workshops, discussions, and other programming throughout the three-day event.
Tickets, participating artists, scheduling information, and visitor details are available through the official FLARE website at flareendo.org.
Supporting the Endometriosis Community
Endometriosis affects more than physical health. Every patient has a different experience, and greater awareness can help patients feel heard, seek answers, and better understand their options.
Initiatives such as Illuminating Endometriosis add an important perspective by giving people another way to share what living with the condition can mean.
At New York Gynecology Surgery and Endometriosis (NYGSE), our team is committed to helping patients understand their symptoms and receive individualized evaluation and care. If you are experiencing symptoms that may be related to endometriosis, you can start with our Endometriosis Symptom Checker or contact our team to schedule a consultation.
References
FLARE. (2026). FLARE: Flourish in Life through Art & Resources for Endometriosis. https://flareendo.org/
FLARE. (2026). Illuminating endometriosis. https://flareendo.org/exhibition
FLARE. (2026). Plan your visit: FLARE: Illuminating Endometriosis. https://flareendo.org/visit
FLARE. (2026). Schedule & tickets: FLARE exhibition weekend. https://flareendo.org/schedule
FLARE [@flare.endo]. (n.d.). Instagram profile. Instagram. Retrieved September 11, 2026, from https://www.instagram.com/flare.endo/
