Client: Roswell Park Cancer Institute
Location: Buffalo, NY, United States
Completion date: 2000
Project Team
Artist
Ellen Steinfeld
Ellen Steinfeld
Industry Resource
Peter Grace
Siracuse Engineers
Industry Resource
Ascension Industries
Ascension Industries
Overview
Large steel 18' x 6' x 6' sculpture for the atrium of Roswell Park Cancer Institute.
Goals
The title "Hope" serves to signal all who enter the hospital as a metaphor for positive feelings. The colorful ascending imaginary forms are uplifting but also create a magical sense of balance. The competition for this commission was highly competitive.
Process
To complete this project many skilled people were involved. The structural engineer who worked on the hospital's drawings also worked on the sculpture. The connections under the atrium's floor to the sculptures' base, the sizes and thickness of the steel, the bolts all needed stamped drawings. Following the drawings the forms were transferred to a CAD file and the steel was laser cut. A local steel company did the fabrication with the artist' supervision of the angles and positioning of the welds. After the sculpture was sandblasted, primed and then painted by the artist it was rigged and installed at the site by private contractors.
Additional Information
Working on the sculptures' fabrication the steel workers concept of art changed since for many this was their first introduction to seeing something beyond heavy industrial products produced. The response by everyone entering the hospital has been very positive to the extent that patients and visitors often call thanking the artist for help during a very emotional time.