April 18, 2002 | Read Time: 2 minutes
A striking series of photographs, quotes, names, and statistics greets visitors and employees upon
arrival at the American Foundation for AIDS Research’s office, in New York.
The images and words, which wind around the walls of the group’s common spaces, frame companion chronological timelines for the AIDS epidemic and the organization’s history.
Conceived and installed by the artist Joseph Kosuth, who donated his time, the parade of images and words serves as a poignant reminder of why the group exists and the progress it has made toward one of its goals: helping to prevent HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, a disease that claimed 3 million lives worldwide in 2001.
The work of art “gives us a basis to explain who we are, what we do, why we do it, what we’ve accomplished, and what we are fighting against,” says Jerome J. Radwin, the chief executive officer.
He says incorporating the information into the design of the office is much more powerful than “a didactic presentation, which, regardless of who gives it, would never be as interesting and quite as emotive.” For example, at meetings with potential donors, charity officials do not spend valuable time explaining the organization’s mission: “It’s on the walls as they come in,” he says.
In addition to educating visitors, the images and words inspire a staff that concentrates on supporting AIDS research, education, and advocacy rather than providing direct care to AIDS patients. “I wanted our staff to get a better sense of the humanity of all this,” says Mr. Radwin, who passes photographs of deceased friends and colleagues in the hallways leading to his office everyday. For some, the reminder of death is depressing, he says. But for himself and most others, the photographs are welcome memorials of loved ones that also help motivate the push for a cure. To that end, the foundation raised $22-million last year from private sources.
The organization hopes to soon widen the collage’s reach by adding more tours for high school students and employees of other AIDS charities, some of whom are too young to recall the early years of the disease. “They didn’t live it,” says Mr. Radwin. The collage helps it “come alive for them” in a way no history book could.
Mr. Kosuth will occasionally update the artwork, which traces the years 1981-99. Says Mr. Radwin: “We have a lot of growth room that we hope we don’t need.”
