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NYC Health + Hospitals completed conservation work on three Works Progress Administration-era murals and a John Rhoden sculpture at Harlem Hospital. The murals include works by Charles Alston and Vertis Hayes, created when Black artists gained access to major public commissions through the Federal Art Project.
NYC Health + Hospitals has completed conservation work on three New Deal-era murals and a sculpture by John Rhoden at Harlem Hospital, preserving artworks made during a significant period for Black artists and public commissions. The works are displayed in the hospital’s indoor mural pavilion.
The restored murals are Charles Alston’s companion works Magic in Medicine and Modern Medicine, both dated 1940, and Vertis Hayes’s eight-panel mural Pursuit of Happiness, dated 1937. The conservation project also included a sculpture by John Rhoden, a New Deal-era artist whose work was held at the hospital. The source report does not identify the sculpture’s title or describe the conservation methods used.
The hospital’s Arts in Medicine department carried out the project. Its head, Larissa Trinder, told Hyperallergic that the murals had faced objections when their designs were submitted in 1936. Administrators said there was “too much black subject matter,” she said. After artists protested publicly, the hospital commissioner reversed the decision, allowing the project to proceed.
The report said conservation work wrapped up on Wednesday, October 14, but did not give a year. It also does not detail the cost, duration, condition of the works before treatment, or whether the restoration changed how the public can access the pavilion.
Preserving Black Artists’ Public Commissions
The conservation keeps a group of public artworks by Black artists in the place for which they were made, while maintaining a record of a contested commission. The murals were produced during a period when the Federal Art Project opened opportunities for Black artists to receive major public commissions, according to the source report.
The story of the rejected designs also adds context to the paintings’ preservation. Trinder’s account describes objections to their subject matter and a reversal after public protest. That history helps explain why conserving the works involves more than caring for physical objects: the murals also document how artists challenged limits placed on their representation in public institutions.
For patients, staff, and visitors, keeping the works in Harlem Hospital sustains the presence of this art in a civic and medical setting. The available report does not assess the murals’ current audience or describe any related education or public programming.
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A Contested Federal Art Project Commission
The murals date to the Great Depression era and are associated with the Works Progress Administration’s Federal Art Project. The program supported artists through public commissions, and the source describes the period as one in which Black artists gained unprecedented access to such work.
In 1936, administrators objected to the submitted designs for Pursuit of Happiness, according to Trinder’s account to Hyperallergic. Artists protested publicly, after which the hospital commissioner reversed the decision. Hayes’s eight-panel mural is dated 1937; Alston’s two companion murals are dated 1940. The latest conservation work brought these three murals and Rhoden’s sculpture into one preservation project.
““too much black subject matter””
— Larissa Trinder, head of NYC Health + Hospitals’ Arts in Medicine program, speaking to Hyperallergic
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Project Details Not Yet Reported
The source confirms that conservation work was completed, but leaves several details open. It does not state the year of the October 14 completion, the project’s budget or timeline, the specific treatment applied to each artwork, or the sculpture’s title. It also does not describe the works’ condition before conservation or provide a technical assessment of their present state.
It is not clear whether the restored artworks are now more accessible to visitors, whether the hospital plans public events around them, or whether further conservation is planned. The report does not include a direct statement from the hospital about those questions.
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Access and Future Conservation Plans
The reported conservation project is complete. The next points to watch are whether NYC Health + Hospitals shares additional details about the treatment and timing, and whether it announces public access or programming connected to the artworks. No further conservation phase or event was identified in the source report.
Until the hospital provides more information, the confirmed development is the completed work on the three murals and Rhoden sculpture at Harlem Hospital; plans for future display, outreach, or preservation remain unspecified.
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Key Questions
Which murals were restored at Harlem Hospital?
The project covered Charles Alston’s Magic in Medicine and Modern Medicine, both dated 1940, and Vertis Hayes’s eight-panel Pursuit of Happiness, dated 1937.
Was anything besides the murals included?
Yes. NYC Health + Hospitals also included a New Deal-era sculpture by John Rhoden. The source report does not give its title.
Who carried out the conservation work?
The hospital’s Arts in Medicine department completed the conservation project, according to the source report.
Why was the commission contested?
Larissa Trinder told Hyperallergic that administrators objected to the submitted designs in 1936, saying there was “too much black subject matter.” Artists protested publicly, and the hospital commissioner later reversed the decision.
When was the conservation completed?
The report says the work wrapped up on Wednesday, October 14, but does not specify the year.
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