Atrium Health and McColl Center Unveil Murals at Atrium Health Carolinas Medical Center
Four murals by local area artists connect art, health and values
CHARLOTTE, N.C., Oct. 4, 2022 – Atrium Health and McColl Center today unveiled four new murals that have been installed prominently in the main lobby of Rush S. Dickson Tower at Atrium Health Carolinas Medical Center. Each of the four murals represents a unique interpretation from a selected McColl Center-connected artist of Atrium Health’s mission to “improve health, elevate hope and advance healing for all.”
The four murals were created by regional artists James Allan Ball, Josh Henderson, Rebecca Lipps and Nadia Ogunfowora. The four artists’ designs were chosen by a panel of Atrium Health and McColl Center representatives after reviewing 58 entries from artists in Cabarrus, Gaston, Iredell, Lincoln, Mecklenburg and Union County in North Carolina and York County in South Carolina.
“Atrium Health is proud to support the artists from McColl Center by placing their beautiful works of art in one of the most visible areas of Atrium Health Carolinas Medical Center,” said Vicki Block, senior vice president and Charlotte market president for Atrium Health. “Atrium Health has a history of incorporating art into its public spaces. This provides our patients, their families and Atrium Health teammates the ability to enjoy the beauty, serenity and healing capabilities of art each day.”
“These beautiful murals from local artists, and the inspiring stories behind each of them, represent the most recent way that Atrium Health and McColl Center have partnered to bring artists together with Atrium Health care providers, patients, their families and staff since 1999,” said Alli Celebron-Brown, McColl Center President and CEO. “Together, the murals as individual works and their shared location in this key Atrium Health facility reflect the enduring truth that health care, well-being, art and creativity are connected and are fundamental dimensions of humanity and community.”
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Editor's note: information on artists and murals is below. Additional artists’ statements are on display with the murals in the lobby and are also available at mccollcenter.org together with artist and mural photos (credit to artists).
James Allan Ball; “Leaves of Life,” 2022
“Leaves of Life” is personal for Ball after Lupus claimed his mother’s life in 2012. Creating something that represents improving health, elevating hope and advancing healing for all is a deeply resonating opportunity for Ball.
“Atrium Health’s mission of health, hope and healing is not only a statement, but a continuous vision of the future imagined,” said Ball. “I was moved with inspiration and eager to be a part of something I believe in wholeheartedly.”
Josh Henderson; “Just Like Home,” 2022
Josh Henderson creates art across a variety of mediums including digital illustration, animation, murals, painting and graphic design. Henderson takes an interdisciplinary approach to deliver messages that can be satirical, political, nostalgic or just reflective.
“I applied to inspire and lift the spirits of people who walk by my work,” said Henderson. “Atrium Health has been a place I can count on to take care of my needs, it was a no-brainer to put work back into a place I feel comfortable.”
Rebecca Lipps; “Hope,” 2022
Rebecca Lipps is a multi-faceted artist and educator who creates works that cultivate an immersive experience through painting, sculpture and video installation. Lipps’ works combine her love for figure, pattern and color into recognizable flower figure murals.
“It was important for me to apply because I thought about all the people entering this landmark Atrium Health facility with worry, doubt or anxiety about their current condition,” said Lipps. “’Hope’ brings positivity to patients before they even walk into the door for treatment.”
Nadia Ogunfowora; “Wrapping the City in Hope,” 2022
Nadia Ogunfowora creates the art she wants to see in the world. Ogunfowora believes as she is getting older and the world is getting harsher, it is important to be a conductor of joy. Thus, she is drawn to and creates art that generates the effect of joyful attraction.
“This Atrium Health and McColl Center artist call stuck out for me because it was for something local and a way for me to bring joy into a part of people’s lives that can be tremendously challenging,” said Ogunfowora. “I also liked the idea that something I created could be seen by people from the community I actually know.”
About Atrium Health
Atrium Health is a nationally recognized leader in shaping health outcomes through innovative research, education and compassionate patient care. Based in Charlotte, North Carolina, Atrium Health is an integrated, nonprofit health system with more than 70,000 teammates serving patients at 40 hospitals and more than 1,400 care locations. It provides care under the Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist name in the Winston-Salem, North Carolina, region, as well as Atrium Health Navicent and Atrium Health Floyd in Georgia and Alabama. Atrium Health is renowned for its top-ranked pediatric, cancer and heart care, as well as organ transplants, burn treatments and specialized musculoskeletal programs. A recognized leader in experiential medical education and groundbreaking research, Wake Forest University School of Medicine is the academic core of the enterprise, including Wake Forest Innovations, which is advancing new medical technologies and biomedical discoveries. Atrium Health is also a leading-edge innovator in virtual care and mobile medicine, providing care close to home and in the home. Ranked nationally among U.S. News & World Report’s Best Hospitals in eight pediatric specialties and for rehabilitation, Atrium Health has also received the American Hospital Association’s Quest for Quality Prize and its 2021 Carolyn Boone Lewis Equity of Care Award, as well as the 2020 Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Health Equity Award for its efforts to reduce racial and ethnic disparities in care. With a commitment to every community it serves, Atrium Health seeks to improve health, elevate hope and advance healing – for all, providing $2.46 billion last year in free and uncompensated care and other community benefits.
About McColl Center
McColl Center is an acclaimed artist residency and contemporary art space in Charlotte, North Carolina. McColl Center believes art thrives when artists do and serves the community as a hub for creative inspiration and support. McColl Center offers subsidized artist studios, modern equipment and tools, entrepreneurship programs, and 5,000 SF of gallery space to exhibit and sell work as tangible commitments to artists first. More at mccollcenter.org.