Pictured above from left to right: Thomas Huck, UH Art Curator and Jackie and Fred C. Rothstein, MD, Endowed Director of Art Curation, Jackie Rothstein, Hunt Slonem and Margaret Singerman, co-chair of UH National Art Leadership Council.

Internationally acclaimed artist Hunt Slonem has made a significant gift to University Hospitals of 12 paintings created throughout his celebrated career, further integrating visual art into the health system’s patient care environments. The works are being installed across public and clinical spaces at UH, where patients, families and caregivers will find a calming and restorative environment.

Slonem’s contribution, one of the most significant to the UH Art Collection in recent years, was made in collaboration with Henry and Pat Shane and includes large-scale paintings in Slonem’s signature style. Recognized for his modern, expressionistic approach and textured surfaces, Slonem’s work features recurring subjects such as rabbits, butterflies and parrots. The gift aligns with a broader effort to bring art into care settings at UH in ways that support healing and well-being. The UH Art Collection consists of more than 3,300 works in all media – paintings, prints, photographs, drawings, textiles, sculpture, glass, ceramics and more – by nationally recognized and emerging artists from across the United States, Canada and globe.

Patients at UH can also interact with art as creators themselves through UH Connor Whole Health’s Expressive Therapy. Research from UH Connor Whole Health links exposure to art in healthcare settings to reduced stress and greater emotional well-being, elevating its role in the patient experience.

Profound Connection Between Art and Healing

“This remarkable donation reflects the profound connection between art and healing,” said Thomas Huck, UH Art Curator and Jackie and Fred C. Rothstein, MD, Endowed Director of Art Curation. “We are deeply honored by Hunt Slonem’s and Henry and Pat Shane’s generosity. I am grateful to Karen Chaikin and Cleveland’s District Gallery for the personal introduction to Hunt during his solo exhibition last summer.”

“Artmaking has been the most healing thing in my life,” said Slonem. “The time I've spent in hospitals in my life, there was very little art. But I hope with what I'm doing and what's being done in Cleveland, there will be a whole group of works of mine that will heal people and make them happy.”

The artwork, currently on display in an exhibit titled TWELVE: A Quiet Act of Giving, can be viewed in the Trudy Wiesenberger Gallery at UH Cleveland Medical Center through the end of September. The gallery is located on the first floor of the Humphrey Building, adjacent to the Lerner Tower main entrance.

Thereafter, the pieces will be placed throughout the health system, including at UH Rainbow Babies & Children’s and at the Iris S. and Bert L. Wolstein Center at UH Cleveland Medical Center.

Art by Hunt Slonem

Enriching Our Environment

Huck said Slonem was inspired to add to UH’s collection when he learned of the health system’s commitment to enriching its care facilities with visual art. “Art can transform waiting areas into galleries, corridors into journeys, and hospital visits into opportunities to connect with something larger than ourselves,” Huck added.

With Slonem’s work on display in more than 250 museums worldwide, this notable landmark for the artist is bringing color and life into spaces where patients and families need it most.

To learn more about giving a gift of art to UH, please contact Shannon Burke at Shannon.Burke@uhhospitals.org.