Professor's Exhibition Critiques Health Care System Through Real Illness
Tyler Professor Pepón Osorio has been celebrated worldwide for his provocative and immersive large-scale, multimedia installations that explore complex, systemic problems in American life through the lived experience of others.
But his current exhibition Convalescence, now on view in the heart of Thomas Jefferson University’s medical center, is the first time he has used his personal story – of cancer diagnosis and treatment – to shine a light on inherent health and health care inequities in the United States.
“The installation tells real stories, by real people, in real circumstances. My story is not that much different from the other individuals,” said Osorio, the Laura H. Carnell Professor of Community Art in Tyler’s Art Education and Community Arts Practices Department. It incorporates scores of pill bottles, IV bags, magnifying glasses, his own MRI scans, and the chair where he sat for many months to receive his cancer treatments.
“With this installation, I wanted to challenge the definition of convalescence. Once you experience a life-threatening illness, your mind, spirit and body never recover. You move on but will never be the same, and that's what we all have in common,” he said.
In conversation
Drawing on relationships with groups typically underserved by the health care system, Osorio’s installation explores the nature of community-based care. The project is part of Jefferson's medical humanities program, which engages students in the arts and humanities in parallel with their health professions education.
On October 17, Osorio will be in conversation with Magda Martinez, a poet, veteran non-profit leader, and COO of the Welcoming Center, about his exhibition, which includes stories from five Philadelphians who have lived through, or are currently experiencing, life-threatening illnesses. The talk begins at 6 p.m. in the Eakins Lounge, Jefferson Alumni Hall, 1020 Locust Street, Philadelphia. To attend, register here.
Osorio is known for merging conceptual art and community dynamics. He has worked with over 25 communities across the United States and internationally, creating installations based on their real-life experiences. His work has been presented at the Whitney Museum of American Art; El Museo del Barrio; New Museum; Smithsonian American Art Museum; El Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico; and El Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Puerto Rico, among others. He is the recipient of various honors, including a John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Fellowship, the Skowhegan Medal for Sculpture, The Herb Alpert Award in the Arts, and a Pew Center for Arts & Heritage Fellowship.
Read more about Tyler’s Community Arts Practices program