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Audio Art Tour for Dana-Farber Patients, Families, and Staff

  • We regret that Acoustiguide devices for walking art tours are unavailable until further notice. Feel free to take our online audio art tour as a way to relax and spend a little time learning about some of our more significant pieces, new acquisitions, and hidden treasures in the Dana-Farber art collection.

  • Audio Art Tour

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    Learn about the Jean S. & Frederic A. Sharf Aerospace Collection at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute - Chestnut Hill.

  • Go to the online art tour

    The art collection at Dana-Farber’s Yawkey Center for Cancer Care features more than 500 works by both local and internationally known artists in public spaces and patient areas throughout the state-of-the-art facility.

    Highlights include Andy Warhol's Souper Dress, a Roy Lichtenstein signed screenprint, a pair of Kiki Smith's 2011 Charm Series etchings, two Spencer Finch light boxes, glass art by Dale Chihuly and Dan Dailey, and Harry Benson's trio of 1964 photographs of the Beatles.

    Each piece of artwork was selected to help create a soothing environment and offer patients, family members and staff moments of inspiration and reflection during stressful times. The majority of art has come from donations.

    To enable patients and families to enjoy the art more fully, Dana-Farber has introduced an audio art tour in both English and Spanish.

    With an easy-to-use handheld device and map, individuals can take a self-guided tour, viewing original artwork and listening to recorded interpretations of the pieces with an accompanying musical score. For patients with limited mobility, the art tour is also available online.

    The 40 minute self-guided audio tour consists of 27 stops and begins with a welcoming message from Institute President and CEO Emeritus, Dr. Edward J. Benz, Jr. and a commentary on the importance of art in healthcare by Malcolm Rogers, Director of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (1995-2015). It also includes interviews and commentary from artists Ralph Helmick and Cheryl Warrick, collector Frederic Sharf, and Nancy Netzer, Professor of Art History and Director, McMullen Museum of Art, Boston College.

    Walking tours

    Hand-held audio tour devices and maps are available at the Concierge Desk in the Shapiro Center for Patients and Families on Yawkey 1, Monday – Friday, 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

    A numeric keypad allows you to take the tour in any order, for any length of time. Look for the sound wave icon and stop number to the right of artwork in the tour.

    Virtual tours

    The tour can also be viewed on iPads, available for loan from the Shapiro Center for Patients and Families on Yawkey 1, and online on Dana-Farber's website. This allows patients to enjoy a virtual tour from any location within the Yawkey Center, or to access it from home.

    Docent-led tours

    Docent-led tours are available for individuals or small groups by appointment. This program compliments the audio art tour by offering participants a personalized tour of works in the collection.

    Contact Art Curator Elaine Tinetti at elaine_tinetti@dfci.harvard.edu or 617-632-4458 to plan your visit.