C L O S L E R
Moving Us Closer To Osler
A Miller Coulson Academy of Clinical Excellence Initiative

Take a moment first to look and wonder. Share your thoughts on what’s going on in this picture.

Abandoned Bronx Golf Center II, oil on linen, 15" x 58", on site by Valeri Larko 2016. www.valerilarko.com. Used via The Fair Use Act.

Takeaway

“I love the suggestion that there is more there than we can see, and also the reminder that as the artist of our own canvas we may adjust some things to our liking (or see them differently).”-Dr. Jessica Colburn, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Passion in the Medical Profession | April 29, 2022 | <1 min read

Highlights

Dr. Kamna Balhara, Johns Hopkins Medicine

This is a gem full of smaller gems! I see it as a reimagined world: taking what’s “discarded” and imagining a world in which it has value. It’s also a comment on what makes something art. I see a home in disrepair with overgrown greenery . . . but the artist has chosen to paint it, elevating it as a subject, one worthy of reproduction. It is reproduced as a subject on canvas and literally replicated off to the left.

Dr. Jessica Colburn, Johns Hopkins Medicine

I see a painting, perhaps still in progress, of what is seen beyond, but the painting tells us there is more than we can see in the frame. I particularly love the furry creature peeking through where the billboard has now digitally changed or was reimagined by the artist. I love the suggestion that there is more there than we can see, and also the reminder that as the artist of our own canvas we may adjust some things to our liking (or see them differently).

What do you think?

Do you want to add to the conversation? Please share!

Dr. Jeff Millstein, Penn Medicine

Fascinating how in the scene we see letters URNE and in painting we see Ernie from Sesame Street. Clever! Also the painted rendition looks brighter and cleaner than the real scene.

Dr. Colleen Christmas, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Whoa. In the painting on the easel there are three structures rather than just the one. The first seems only to have graffiti on top and maybe plain on the bottom. The second one has graffiti on top and maybe some figures on bottom. The third is all graffiti. It feels like a story.

Dhiraj Samaiyarm, Human Resources

The flowers in the garden are very beautiful.

Dr. Megan Berger

It’s interesting to me that the artist changed what’s on the billboard and whited out the view of the sky underneath. I find myself wondering why.