The Huntsville Hospital Auxiliary has started a pilot project to both decorate and raise money for its hospital.
The hospital will display paintings from local artists and sell them to benefit the Huntsville Hospital Foundation’s Focus on Imaging campaign, which funds diagnostic imaging equipment for the site.
The first artist to be featured is auxiliary member Brenda Turnour, who recently moved to Huntsville and has sold upwards of 500 paintings.
“It’s a Muskoka scene, taken from Algonquin Park when I was walking through the woods,” says Turnour. “It’s basically birch trees, both deciduous and coniferous trees, an autumn scene. It’s a feel-good painting, one of my favourites.”
According to Turnour, the $3,000 painting measures a bit over four-feet by three-feet, and is hung across from the elevators on the main floor.
She says that as a volunteer in the day-surgery unit, she frequently sees people in need of a distraction.
“A lot of these people, particularly if it’s their first time, they’re very nervous and scared about what might be the conclusion,” says Turnour. “It’s not necessarily a happy place.”
Turnour says the goal is to give people visiting the hospital something nice to look at, and hopefully take their minds off their problems.
“How can I make them happy, or help them find peace for a short period of time? That’s basically my goal with whatever pieces I do hang in there,” says Turnour. “And that will be the focus when other artists do bring their art in. I want it to be an uplifting piece that can appeal to the masses, and help the average person who comes into our hospital.”
As this is a pilot project, Turnour is the only artist featured at the moment, but says they’ll likely open it up to other local artists in the new year. She says the hospital has bought three anti-theft painting hanging systems, with about six feet of space in each, which will be installed in different places.
Turnour says they plan to put the display pieces on rotations of about three months, due to the time it takes to securely install the paintings. Prices could range from $300 to $5,000, depending on size, complexity, and how many paintings the artist has sold.
If you’d like to purchase the painting, contact information can be found under the painting at the hospital.