Twenty works of mine are now adorning hallways and patient spaces at Jefferson Hospital's Sydney Kimmel Center for Radiation Oncology. New Urban Optics presents my work alongside fellow Philadelphian artist Anthony Torcasio through a project with Revolvd Art, which curates exhibitions of local artists within commercial and non-traditional spaces.
The aesthetic results are pretty strange - juxtaposing fine art alongside scales, medical equipment, and numerous Purell dispensers under sometimes dreary hospital lighting. This contrast, however, seems to be lost among the staff I've met so far who are quite enthusiastic about the art we've installed in their workplace. One custodian remarked how in his eight years of working there he's never seen a transformation as exciting and colorful as this: "This place was so dull. Now look at it!"
That response encapsulates precisely why I opted to participate in this project. Revolvd takes art to where people are rather than require people to seek it out. Here, it becomes part of the everyday experience of staff and patients alike who will have the opportunity to discover and become familiar with over fifty works of art over the next four months. I hope it opens up considerations of spatial and psychological possibilities within a visually sterile setting. I hope it changes the tone of a workday or visit for treatment.
Justin Rubich and Anthony Torcasio
April 18–July 31, 2016
Opening Reception:
Thursday May 19, 4–7 pm
Jefferson Hospital
Sydney Kimmel Center for Radiation Oncology
111 S 11th St, Philadelphia, PA
Presented by Revolvd LLC