Windowless exam rooms at the Woodland Cancer Care Center of Franciscan Health Michigan City will have unique splashes of color to greet patients thanks to LaPorte artist Ginny Scott.
Director of Oncology Services Catherine Hebbe joined Scott to unveil two abstract paintings on June 30 at the Woodland Cancer Care Center lobby. The paintings will hang in spots where windows had to be removed for construction of an addition to house a linear accelerator used to deliver radiation treatment to cancer patients. “It looks like it’s almost intentional for the art to go there,” Hebbe said.
Radiation oncologist Luke Miller, MD, reached out to Scott, who had undergone cancer treatment five years ago at the Woodland Cancer Care Center. “It’s really an honor, and when Dr. Miller approached me, I was shocked,” Scott said, adding that being commissioned to do the paintings was a welcome project after a year of “being cloistered” during the pandemic.
Scott said she paints her canvases on the floor as opposed to an easel, which allows her to walk around the painting and work from all angles. “I never know what I’m going to do. I don’t sketch, I don’t draw, I just paint. I visualize. So, it’s coming from my mind. It’s coming from my subconscious,” she said.
“My objective with this work was just to create some peaceful moment,” she added. “You can enjoy the color, you can enjoy the structure and whatever you see, you see.”
After being displayed in the lobby for a couple weeks for patients to enjoy, the paintings will be installed in the exam rooms, Hebbe said.
Photo: From left, Woodland Cancer Care Center nurse Kris Shebel, Director of Oncology Catherine Hebbe, Dr. Luke Miller, artist Ginny Scott and Franciscan Health Michigan City Vice President of Mission Integration Sister Petra Nielsen.