Campus invited to Sept. 24 presentation on Sorrell Center artwork









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This mural by Omaha artist Steven C. Roberts is among the many pieces of art in the Sorrell Center.

One of the highlights of the Michael F. Sorrell Center for Health Science Education is the outstanding number of art pieces throughout the building.

The building features 60 works of art by Nebraska artists or artists who have ties to the state. This represents one of the largest collections of Nebraska art in the state.

On Sept. 24, UNMC faculty, staff and students are invited to hear a presentation by Karen Linder and James Linder, M.D., on the artwork inside the Sorrell Center. The presentation is part of the annual meeting of the Friends of the McGoogan Library. Anyone can attend the presentation, said Nancy Woelfl, Ph.D., director of the McGoogan Library of Medicine.

The event begins with a reception at 6 p.m. in the Linder Reading Room on the second floor of the Sorrell Center followed by the Linders’ presentation at 6:30 p.m. in Room 2010 of the Sorrell Center.

Those wishing to attend should RSVP by Sept. 19 to UNMC Alumni Affairs, 559-4385, or alumni@unmc.edu.

“It will be an interesting presentation with lots of appeal to the UNMC community,” Dr. Woelfl said. “We’d also love to recruit a few new members to the Friends of the McGoogan Library. It’s a group that plays a key role in helping the library prosper and continue to be a key resource on campus.”

Dr. Woelfl said there are currently about 140 members of the Friends of the McGoogan Library. Anyone making a donation to the library automatically becomes a member of the group. There are no annual dues charged to members.

“One of our goals in designing the building was to create a comfortable study environment through both the architecture and artwork,” said Dr. Linder, who is associate vice chancellor for research and president and CEO of UNeMed Corp., the technology transfer company for UNMC. Dr. Linder and his wife were members of the artwork acquisition committee for the Sorrell Center.

The artwork – a variety of paintings, photographs and sculptures – includes a mix of two- and three-dimensional pieces, and features a mural by Steven C. Roberts and ceramic “dangos” (Japanese for dumpling) by Jun Kaneko. The exhibit also includes paintings on loan from the Museum of Nebraska Art in Kearney, Neb.

Other featured artists include Ray Knaub, Larry Roots, Stephen Dinsmore and Deborah Murphy. The exhibit also features artwork by faculty at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, University of Nebraska at Omaha and the University of Nebraska at Kearney. All of the artwork was acquired with private funds or donated by art patrons.

“The planning committee wanted the artwork to be inspirational and thought provoking and provide students with an artistic experience to supplement their scientific education,” said Karen Linder, who is a cytotechnologist and past president of the American Society for Cytotechnology.