UIC Urology News and Events

Leading Mexican Artist Dedicated Sculpture at Medical Center

The University of Illinois at Chicago held a ceremony to dedicate Mexican artist Leonardo Nierman's latest sculpture July 14 at 11 a.m. at the corner of Wood and Taylor streets.

The graceful stainless steel sculpture, titled "Eternal Flight," stands in the courtyard of the Outpatient Care Center of the University of Illinois Medical Center at Chicago.

Nierman dedicated his work in honor of Dr. Lawrence Ross, Clarence C. Saelhof Professor and head of urology at UIC.

Ross first met Nierman five years ago and says they "just hit it off."

"This honor came from out of the blue," Ross said. "I mentioned that I was stepping down as department head here to fulfill my responsibilities as newly elected president of the American Urological Association, and Mr. Nierman said that he would like to honor me by donating a sculpture to the university."

On a subsequent trip to Chicago, the two friends scouted locations on the UIC campus and settled on the Outpatient Care Center. They hoped that patients coming to the medical center for care would enjoy being able to focus on something beautiful.

Nierman's work is already represented in Chicago. In 2002, the city commissioned him to create the Flame of the Millennium, which stands at the southbound interior of the Ohio Street interchange on the Kennedy Expressway. The piece represents a flame in the wind as the source of light bringing wisdom and clarity in the new millennium.

Nierman is widely regarded as one of Mexico's leading contemporary artists. His works at recent exhibits were described as challenging and inspiring, drawing upon themes from the beauty of nature to the mysteries of the cosmos.

His work is included in the collections of the Art Institute of Chicago; the Vatican Museum of Contemporary Art & Vatican Gardens in Rome; the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; and the Museum of Modern Art, Mexico City, among others.

"It's very exciting for me and for the university to have such an important piece of art -- something that our staff, students and patients can all enjoy," Ross said. "I am truly honored."

UIC ranks among the nation's top 50 universities in federal research funding and is Chicago's largest university with 25,000 students, 12,000 faculty and staff, 15 colleges and the state's major public medical center. A hallmark of the campus is the Great Cities Commitment, through which UIC faculty, students and staff engage with community, corporate, foundation and government partners in hundreds of programs to improve the quality of life in metropolitan areas around the world.

From www.news.uic.edu. Click here for more photos.