The University's Public Art Committee selected a design for a mural to decorate the new Medical Education Building, which is scheduled to open in July.
The committee chose Washington D.C. artist Larry Kirkland's design for an alcove above the building's main lobby and between its two auditoriums, said Mike McCormick, assistant vice president for planning, design and construction and a committee member. The seven-member Public Art Committee former Corporation member Artemis Joukowsky '55 P'87, Public Art Fund President Susan Freedman '82 and faculty and staff members.
Major University construction projects allocate 1 percent of their budgets to public art displays, McCormick said. The Alpert Medical School building project has an estimated budget of $45 million, of which $30.5 million has been raised, according to the Med School's website.
Kirkland expects to meet with University faculty and Med School students again before the design is finalized, he said. The design he proposed emphasizes the relationship between two people — such as a doctor and patient — and includes a representation of two heartbeats, he said.
Kirkland said he envisions two stone chairs positioned in front of the mural to further the theme of relationships.
He emphasized "the humanity of medicine" to connect with the University's interdisciplinary philosophy.
"I want the doctor to understand the science but also to understand that each person is unique in their life and lifestyle," Kirkland said. "I want my physician to help me make the right choice for my life."
Other proposals placed artwork above the first-floor staircase as well as in the alcove, but Kirkland's design only incorporates the alcove, said Jo-Ann Conklin, director of the David Winton Bell Gallery in the List Art Center and a committee member. The committee especially liked Kirkland's incorporation of traditional and "very rich" materials like marble and granite into his design, she said.
Kirkland will return to campus to discuss the mural with a focus group of medical faculty and students. He said he is considering casting small objects with significance to the Med School in bronze to place on the wall beside the mural, he said.
Public art in University buildings allows community members to feel connected with the space, McCormick said. "We think public art, especially when it's built into the building, makes it a better building."
