MD Anderson Cancer Center at Cooper Incorporates Works of NJ Artists in New Facility
Art is meant to inspire and enlighten. In a healthcare setting, it can also be used as part of the healing process. With this in mind, the new MD Anderson Cancer Center at Cooper will incorporate more than 100 pieces of original art created by 71 New Jersey artists (see list of artists/works below).
“Studies have shown that integrating the healing arts into a patient’s experience can positively impact their outcome,” said Generosa Grana, MD, Director of MD Anderson cancer Center at Cooper. “Art has been documented to aid in stress reduction and calming the patient, reducing pain and positively contributing to the overall well-being of the patient.”
The works range in subject matter from landscapes and still life to abstracts. The artists used a variety of mediums including oil on canvas, watercolors, screen printing, acrylic on wood, giclée and photography among others to create each original piece.
In addition to the fine art on display, the entire building was designed to be a healing environment. The 103,000 square-foot, four-story facility uses evidence-based design principles throughout. Evidence-based design in healthcare facility planning takes into account how the physical environment impacts patient stress, patient and staff safety, staff effectiveness and quality of care.
Features that were incorporated into the center include a rooftop Tranquility Garden, natural day lighting, open spaces and soothing neutral tones. The lobby also includes a two-story sculptural element. The Tree of Life is composed of acrylic boxes, arranged in a stepped relief pattern set on a backlit translucent panel. Behind the panel, ever-changing, softly colored LED lights give the impression of moving leaves.
“When we set out to design the building, it was important to us that we engage our employees into the selection process of the artwork,” said Susan Bass Levin, President and Chief Executive Officer of The Cooper Foundation. “This building is a symbol of hope for all of New Jersey and by selecting artists with ties to our state was a perfect fit to complete this symbolism.
Camden artist Jeff Filbert has close ties to Cooper – he was born at the hospital and has had a studio on the same street for more than 20 years. Filbert, whose abstract monotype Sunrise is on display, recognizes the role art plays in the medical world. “We are all healing in one way or another, and art—in its mysterious ways—can connect us to that process,” he said.
Artist Beverly Golembeski of Seaside Park also shares a particularly meaningful Cooper connection. “My mother was treated for breast cancer at Cooper many years ago. To have my artwork hang on the walls of the new cancer center is a tribute to her as well as to the city where I spent my childhood,” she said. Her watercolor painting, Roses are Yellow and Orange, was selected for the collection.
Other pieces have additional significance for the region. Haddonfield native Laura Petrovich-Cheney, who currently resides in Asbury Park, has three original pieces on display. All were created from wooden remnants collected following last year’s Superstorm Sandy. Her work, Court House Steps, Locked In and The Take Away, focuses on resurrecting debris found in natural environments. “Creating symmetrical abstract patterns is my way of dealing with life’s ambiguities and uncertainties,” she said. “In a way, we all suffer like discarded wood at some point in our lives, but through love and kindness, we recover.”
In the spirit of collaboration that is the hallmark of MD Anderson Cancer Center at Cooper, 22 artists from the Perkins Center for the Arts in Moorestown and Collingswood joined creative forces to design individual squares that together form a singular piece.
All of the art in the collection will be on permanent display. “It is really an incredible body of work, rivaling any gallery with one big difference,” said Dr. Grana. “This exhibition is more than just a beautiful expression. It is an integral part of creating an environment to enrich the experience of patients, families and staff and promote healing.”
List of New Jersey Artists/Works on Permanent Exhibition at MD Anderson Cancer Center at Cooper
David Ahlsted, Egg Harbor City – Sugar Babies, oil on canvas
Nancy Alter, Cherry Hill – The Market, acrylic on canvas
Kassam Amoudi, Camden – Rising in Love, acrylic on board
Arthur Brener, Haddon Township – Pillars, screen print
Pat Brentano, Westfield – New Jersey Coast, cut paper collage
William Butler, Camden – Sea Isle, acrylic on canvas
Maryann Cannon, Millville – Green Velvet, oil on panel
Philip J. Carroll, Collingswood – Pine Barrens, oil on panel
Laura Williams Chassot, Collingswood – Strokes Series: Sit, Ascension, Contemplation, acrylic on board
David Clemans, Cape May Point – Kaleidoscope, oil on canvas
Jeff Filbert, Camden – Sunrise, abstract monotype
Bruce Garrity, Penns Grove – Falls, oil on canvas
Beverly Golembeski, Seaside Park – Roses are Yellow and Orange, watercolor
Sonia Gonzalez, Cherry Hill – Just Flower, oil panel
Sheila Grabarsky, Waretown – Making Gray Happy, mixed media
Diane S. Grimes, Medford Lakes – Long Beach Island Marshland, oil on canvas
Jim Inzero, Point Pleasant Beach – My Favorite Spot, original encaustic painting
Sandra L. Jones, Burlington City – Winter Still, giclée
Paul Farwell Keene, Jr., Cape May – Cape May #11, print
Steve Kuzma, Ventnor – Garden One and Two, prints
Yuri Lev, Cherry Hill – East Point Lighthouse, photograph
Barbara March, Marlton – Family Tree, giclée
Leslie Ashton Martel, Cape May – The Pink Hat, Norma and Cha Cha Cha, acrylic on board
Joyce Harris Mayer, Medford – Homage to Monet, archival pigment print
Lucy Graves McVicker, Princeton – Surprises on the Path, monotype
Deb Strong Napple, Somerville – Serpentine Hills, oil on panel
Vincent Nardone, Brick Township – The Glimmer Glass on the Manasquan, giclée
Marie Natalie, Egg Harbor – Summer Stroll, giclée
Liz Nicklus, Millville – Solarscape, oil on canvass
Doris Nogueria-Rogers, Woodbury – Lace and Layers, mixed medium
Liesl Oberfeld, Camden – Photo Collage
Jon Park, Somerset – Morning Mist, print
Laura Petrovich-Cheney, Asbury Park – Court House Steps, Locked In and The Take Away, salvaged wood from Superstorm Sandy
Dolores Poacelli, Collingswood – Still Life in Aqua, acrylic and collage tryptich
Joe Rademan, Westville – Field Day, oil on canvas
Linda Ramsay, Wenonah – Mullica River, giclée
Heather Rippert, Sea Isle – Lines in the Sand, giclée
Marilyn Rose, West Caldwell – Landscape #1, oil on canvas
Barbara Schaff, Plainfield – The Coast, acrylic on paper
Ilona Sochynsky, Margate – Permutation #1, oil on board
Carol Staub, Somerset – Sidewalk Series No. 8, mixed media
Marlene Baron Summers, Cherry Hill – Pink and Red Tulips on Green, oil on canvas
Shelley Thorstensen, Cherry Hill – Border Crossing, mixed media
James Toogood, Cherry Hill – Cranberry Bog, giclée
Urban Promise/Youth Artists, Camden, NJ – abstracts by Demetrius, age 12 and Eulith, age 8
Patricia Walker, Haddonfield – Gifts of the Goddess-Courage, painting on silk
Alice Steer Wilson, Moorestown, Merchantville, Cape May – October on the Marsh, giclée
Artistic Collaboration:
Shirlene Abrams, Maple Shade
Kathleen Dallara-Pennell, Haddon Heights
John Flynn, Ocean City
Andrea Garber, Voorhees
Ellen Gussman, Cherry Hill
Janet Hallahan, Haddonfield
Nancy L. Harty, Medford
Joy Hoffman, Moorestown
Carol Kontos-Cohen, Medford
Helene Lilholt, Riverton
Angela Nocera, Mount Laurel
Regina Ottman, Laurel Springs
Debbie Pasquale, Collingswood
Debbie Pey, Bordentown
Dolores Poacelli, Collingswood
Catherine Redding, Vineland
Myra Ryan, Riverton
Carol Schell, Somerdale
Charlie Snell, Moorestown
Jan Terry, Pemberton
Donna Sensor Thomas, Mount Laurel