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June 6, 2003
Art works in Vancouver hospital
Patients, visitors and staff benefit from an idea that came from
Los Angeles.
KATHARINE HAMER SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH BULLETIN
When you imagine the type of artwork you might find in the hallways
of a large urban hospital, you picture the odd watercolor –
perhaps a portrayal of some limpid flowers in a vase. What you wouldn't
expect, entering the lobby of the new Jim Pattison Pavilion at Vancouver
General Hospital (VGH), is to be faced with a stunning, large-scale
work by renowned Canadian painter Gordon Smith – one of numerous
canvases being put up around the hospital under the aegis of the
VGH and the University of British Columbia Hospital Foundation art
committee.
Roberta Beiser is the chair of the art committee. She was inspired
to launch this project, in which more than 300 works of art will
be placed around the hospital in the next three months, by a visit
to Cedars-Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles.
"They have a phenomenal collection and I saw and realized the
impact it had and I thought, why can't we do this here at this new
building?" said Beiser.
So she and her fellow committee members, including Jim O'Hara, the
hospital's director of leadership giving, and eye surgeon/artist
Dr. Jack Rootman, began issuing requests for donations of art. Many
paintings, including Smith's Monet-like "Byway Pond,"
were donated by the artists. O'Hara notes that the aim now is to
get collectors – perhaps those who are downsizing – to
participate in the process. The hospital has already had a generous
donation from Yosef Wosk and from a local dentist who gave them
a number of paintings from his private collection. Barry Mowatt
of the Buschlen Mowatt Gallery has also offered to set up a permanent
exhibition of works in the palliative care unit.
A tour of some of the pieces on display included the multimedia
work of local Jewish artist Pnina Granirer, laden with giant poppies
and window frames and images of her family; five primary color pieces
by New York-based artist Tom Slaughter; a forceful and multi-layered
3D papier mâché work by Nicole Dextras; and a rust
wash by Martha Sturdy set against a slate-blue wall in the acute
care unit. The new facility is light and airy, which is key to showing
off the pieces to their best advantage, said O'Hara.
Rootman – who has been painting for 20 years and who already
has work up at the Eye Care Centre across the street – will
contribute one of his pieces to the Pattison site. The committee
also has a Jack Shadbolt piece that is waiting to go up.
The six members of the committee make a collective decision to accept
a piece, usually based on a slide image of the artwork.
"I would say most of the art we've chosen is challenging but
we're also mindful of the environment that it's going into,"
said O'Hara.
"We don't want skeletons or dead cows," said Beiser.
Donors – who will be recognized in a plaque adjacent to the
artwork – are responsible for any framing costs and the cost
of transporting the piece to the hospital. The committee, in this
way, has managed to gather $350,000 worth of art with a minimum
expenditure.
"It's great exposure for the artist," said O'Hara. "We've
got over 100,000 people come over the threshold of this institution
every year."
Not every viewer will be in agreement about the work that they see,
and Beiser pointed out that there has to be a certain sensitivity
to anything people might find offensive, particularly along cultural
or religious lines. But then O'Hara recounted a story about a visitor
to the hospital who tracked him down to discuss a picture. The small
canvas featured a bare-breasted angel and O'Hara worried it might
have been perceived as salacious. In fact, the woman wanted to thank
him for putting the work up – it turned out she had drawn enormous
inspiration and a sense of spiritual comfort from the piece when
she came to visit a relative in the intensive care unit.
"People spend time waiting in these environments and they do
have the opportunity to look more deeply when they have the time,"
said Rootman. "I think giving them something to look at makes
a big difference."
O'Hara added, "We've had a lot of positive feedback from the
doctors and nurses. Let's face it, people who come into this environment
are usually fairly anxious. They're either coming in as patients
or they're coming in as family members to visit patients, so there's
a high degree of anxiety. For people who work here, it's a stressful
environment, so any opportunity we can provide to allow for some
deviation, for some reflection, for some amusement, for some joy,
that's part of what we're doing."
To find out more about the VGH art project, contact O'Hara at 604-875-1000.
Katharine Hamer is a Vancouver freelance writer.
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