by Cindy A. Abole, Public Relations

Rising young artist John Douglas Donehue Jr., admires “Carolina Thirty-Two” which hangs in the airy Rutledge Tower north entrance. Always in constant motion, the 75-pound mobile artfully captures sunlight and reflects patterns below.

Receiving a 1998 Spoleto Festival craft fair award has done nothing but open doors for Lowcountry artist and sculptor John Douglas Donehue Jr. He’s especially proud of his latest achievement which he defines as both a tribute and triumph currently featured at MUSC Rutledge Tower.

“I feel lucky to be asked to work on this piece,” said Donehue, a 1994 graduate of Savannah College of Art and Design now working with Brooks Sign Center in Charleston. “I was fortunate to be able to work closely with the architect.”

That architect and project designer is David Thome of Enwright Associates, Inc. in Greenville. Enwright won the $32 million renovation contract to convert the old St. Francis Xavier Hospital after it was acquired by MUSC in 1992. Enwright was also the architectural firm that designed the Strom Thurmond Biomedical Research Center and the Gazes Cardiac Institute which opened in 1996.

“It was a challenge to find art that could accommodate the North Tower entrance,” said Thome in a recent telephone interview. “It’s a good volume of space to work with. Architecturally, there’s a great floor to height ratio.”

It was the decision of Rutledge Tower’s steering committee to utilize local artistry in various places at Rutledge Tower. Thome worked with Barbara Stender, an art historian and owner of “Art for Business,” an agency that markets local artist’s works.

Millie Jenkins, Linda Crosby and Gean Johnson, Department of Financial Services, admire the serene-like quality achieved by Charleston artist, Gale Ray. Her tapestry “Hope” uses a mixture of woven cotton fibers, sparkling metallics and clear monofilament.

“Rutledge Tower is very unique,” said Stender. “It conveys the feeling of a combined high quality, state-of-the art, modern and comfortable environment for anyone walking through its halls. Visiting a hospital should not be like attending a house tour. People need to be made comfortable. This is accomplished even with the area’s high artistic standards.”

Thome was hopeful with the idea of using a mobile to fill the airy two-story space. He and Stender visited several Lowcountry galleries and houses to help identify Charleston’s artistic mood and talent. Stender knew the 28-year old Donehue from his successful run at the Spoleto arts and crafts exhibition and introduced him to Thome. The two collaborated and the mobile quickly evolved.

Donehue created a one-third scale model featuring the same materials from the original. Shortly afterwards, Donehue supervised the final steps in hanging his 75-pound masterpiece on July 23.

“I focused on utilizing both color and design,” said Donehue, describing the three-tiered steel rod mobile delicately balanced by three cantilevers. The tower’s north entrance features a revolving door and carpet’s sweeping linear circle designs— matching the mobile’s discs and arcs to the room’s natural curves and the piece’s constant multi-directional movement. The discs, shaped from welded sheet metal and airbrushed in shades of purples and deep blues help compliment the carpet’s “wayfaring” designs, wall colors and natural light. “I wanted to bring everything out from above and below,” Donehue said.

“Carolina Thirty-Two,” titled after the structure’s design of four individual mobiles each hosting eight discs, isdedicated to his father, long-time Charlestonian J. Douglas Donehue. He recently completed a smaller scale version of the mobile which was auctioned for charity supporting the MUSC Children’s Hospital Fund.

Other artistic pieces featured at Rutledge Tower include: “Hope,” Gale Ray; “The Beauty of Life..The Passages of Time...The Choices We Make..The Hand of Fate,” Nancy Lee Sneddon; and “Marsh Vistas,” John Hulsey.

“There’s no doubt the renovation was a challenge. We wanted to stay within our budget and make sure the renovation designs were not too opulent, but instead, kept a good balance,” Thome commented. “I’m proud that through art, we were able to initiate some positive results by creating a comfortable mood for visitors at Rutledge Tower.”

Designing women tackle Rutledge Tower

by Cindy A. Abole, Public Relations

For most people, eyeing a shade of blue on a wall or carpet might seem elementary. But for the Department of Construction and Design crew of Christine Inabinett, Allyson Yokley and Stephanie Whited, primary blue might yield to indigo, navy or slate blue hues when in a waiting room area, office and clinic within MUSC’s Rutledge Tower.

“We received nothing but support and encouragement from our boss and everyone on the Rutledge Tower steering committee to do what we’ve done,” said Pam Verdery, manager, Department of Construction and Design which manages design work for the Medical Center through Facilities Management.

“There was a huge amount of teamwork put into this,” Verdery said.

Inabinett and Yokley collaborated with Greenville architect David Thome and a parade of others assigned to the Rutledge Tower task. Following the 1995 acquirement of St. Francis Hospital by UMA through MUSC’s Health Sciences Foundation, interior design plans began to unfold by late December 1996.

In selecting art for the many specialty clinics, waiting areas and hallways, the duo choose specific prints and made selections which helped compliment some of the buildings dramatic open spaces. The art, paired with the floor pattern’s geometric designs and functional work environments met the approval of Thome and the Rutledge Tower Steering Committee.

“We knew we had to make changes by setting a precedence with the art and furniture,” said Inabinett. “Our selections had to be transitional reflecting a cross between traditional and contemporary designs.”

The overall results proved refreshing yet functional in the 10-floor adult and pediatric clinical services structure. The group’s careful selection and placement of cheery artwork married to the simple yet functional furniture originates from the second floor crosswalk connecting the Children’s Hospital to the spacious lobby of the hospital’s Digestive Disease Center inside Rutledge Tower.

Inabinett recalls the artistic challenge of selecting artwork which conforms to an active health care setting. To achieve this, the group contracted the expertise of health care environmental specialists American Art Resources in Houston.

Inabinett worked with associate Daniel Day whose firm specializes in art consultation for healthcare facilities and clinics. The firm, whose clients include the Carolinas Hospital System, Chicago’s Northwestern Memorial Hospital and Loma Linda’s Children’s Hospital, follows a design philosophy that reflects function, demographics and their hospital staff members, patients and their families.

Day and his team confirmed preselected art chosen by the MUSC design group. His team followed criteria exploring geographic location, patient demographics and each art piece’s aesthetic value.

For example, a photo depicting an outdoor nature scene featuring green trees, a flowing stream, and smooth rocks would garner more positive responses if placed within a high-stressed environment like an emergency room. In contrast, the use of some contemporary artwork in patient areas can make people feel uncomfortable. Rutledge uses more traditional contemporary pieces in some non-clinical areas such as main corridors and lobbies.

“We wanted to recommend art that presents a genuine reflection of the community it serves,” said Day, who defined MUSC’s customer population as being universal, showing a special interest in nature-based images. “We tried to integrate towards more traditional artwork. We were searching for something that flowed from floor to floor.”

“It's the patients who are important to us,” said Kim Duckworth, program manager of special projects, College of Medicine. “It’s important for them to come into a health care environment that’s not scary or anxiety-ridden.”

Patients have responded positively, said Brenda Falls, director of ambulatory care, Administrative Services at Rutledge Tower. “They feel that the colors are both uplifting and refreshing.”