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Jackson Hospital
Jackson Hospital
received the
inaugural Helen Steineker Community
Award from the Montgomery Business
Committee for the Arts on November 3,
2016. The award posthumously honors
Steineker, who managed the Montgom-
ery Symphony Orchestra for more than
25 years. Jackson Hospital was honored
for its unique program that has turned
the hospital’s hallways into an art
museum—one that never closes.
A dream come true
The Jackson Hospital Foundation’s (JHF)
Healing Art Collection has grown steadily
since the 2008 acquisition of 15 paint-
ings from the Montgomery Art Guild/
Jackson Healing
Art program
wins
community award
COMMUNITY
First Alabama (now Regions) Bank show
and competition. Former JHF board
chairwoman Laura Harmon and JHF
President Janet McQueen secured the
placement of these iconic paintings by
noted Montgomery artists through the
cooperation of both entities.
The two were soon joined in the quest
for additional art by Katherine Gayden,
whose father, Jimmie Sabel, had also
served on the foundation board decades
earlier. An artist himself who actively
championed the local art community,
Sabel envisioned businesses like Jackson
Hospital filled with local art. It is a
dream that came true with a collection
that now numbers more than 260 pieces
by 175 artists and photographers in the
River Region.
“Art can play an important role in
healing by offering beautiful, diverse and
interesting focal points for patients and
visitors, as well as hospital staff,” McQueen
says. “We have a unique opportunity
to showcase local art to a captive audience.”
Emotional reaction
The foundation’s goal is to create a less
stressful experience for people while
they are in a hospital. McQueen related
the story of a visitor who spent three
days studying a watercolor by the late
Paulette Riley.
“I want you to notice she painted a
cracked button on her flannel shirt,” the
visitor said of the painting of an elderly
woman fishing with a cane pole. He
added that his wife was a patient.
“That said everything I needed to
know about the power of the paintings in
the hospital and how it can move a per-
son to not dwell on their own problems,
but to focus on something beautiful,”
McQueen says.
Art in the River Region
Overwhelming support from the com-
munity and generous donations by many
artists have made this endeavor even
more special. Original works by Mary
Lynne Levy, Sharon Yavis, Sandra Hicks
Larson, Marguerite Edwards, Barbara
Gallagher, Priscilla Crommelin, Nancy
Hartsfield, Jimmie Sabel, Jake Wagnon,
Clark Walker, Jack Deloney, Mose T. and
many more works by prominent names
in the River Region’s art community
grace the hospital’s walls.
The vast array of art in hallways and
waiting rooms has added great character
and provided a source for conversation.
Art brochures are available in the main
lobby of the hospital to guide visitors to
specific artists and favorite pieces.
“Any venue that highlights local artists
and their work is good for the commu-
nity,” says Rusty Gregory, of Stonehenge
Gallery. “The patients and visitors get
a lot of enjoyment from viewing the
artwork, and I am honored to be a part of
this ongoing project.”
The hospital received a new piece of
artwork at the ceremony. The award it-
self was a painting by local artist Barbara
Davis, of crowds listening to the Mont-
gomery Symphony Orchestra’s outdoor
pops concerts. The scenes were events
coordinated by Steineker for years—and
it serves as a showcase for her resilient
spirit.
HEALING ART
Jackson Hospital
Foundation President
Janet McQueen
accepts the Helen
Steineker Community
Award from Ashley
Ledbetter, Executive
Director for
Montgomery Area
Business Committee
for the Arts.
For more
information about
the Healing Art
program, call the
Jackson Hospital
development office
at 334-293-6941.