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The digital rendering image of the COVID-19 memorial monument, with dandelion flowers and COVID-19 virus shape inspired sculptures. Credit: Privded/Covid-19 Monument Commission based on concept by Casey Schachner
NEAR WEST SIDE — When art historian and museum curator Sally Metzler envisioned a monument to honor those affected by COVID-19, she wasn’t sure where it would stand.
Meanwhile, the Illinois Medical District had already designated space for a park of wellness and healing at the confluence of four hospitals. Through a mutual contact, Metzler met Allyson Hansen, the medical district’s CEO and executive director, to discuss their ideas.
“We always knew we wanted a park at Ogden, Damen and Polk because it’s the center of the district,” Hansen said. “It’s one place that all of most of our hospitals are looking down on or crossing over regularly. … We thought, what a perfect location, what a perfect tribute to our ecosystem, which is health care.”
The result is the COVID-19 Memorial Monument of Honor, Remembrance & Resilience, a 25-foot stainless steel sculpture to be placed at 2023 W. Ogden Ave., between Stroger Hospital and Jesse Brown VA Medical Center.
The monument is designed by Casey Schachner, a sculpture professor at Georgia Southern University selected after an international competition. Her concept merges two powerful symbols: the dandelion flower and the COVID-19 virus, both sharing a rounded, spiked form.
“There are 200 different types of dandelions on earth and they grow everywhere in the world,” Metzler said. “It’s this inclusivity of the concept where it coalesces both part of the virus but more of a flower rending to give someone hope [that] really resonated with us.”
A dedication ceremony for the monument is planned for October, though Metzler noted that an exact date is pending because of construction schedules. The park’s first phase is expected to be complete by early 2026, with additional phases depending on funding, Hansen said. The Illinois Medical District plans to get community feedback on the park’s theme and is still deciding on a name, she said.
Metzler said the monument project raised about a half million dollars through grassroots efforts toward the estimated total cost of more than $2 million. The IMD park development has secured separate funding in part through grants, with $1.2 million planned for park construction, Hansen said. The total cost of the project is estimated at $5 million, Hansen said.
The monument design will feature approximately five flower stalks that will glow in different colors at night. Metzler said the monument will be open to the public 24/7.
“We want Chicago to be very proud that we are the home for this global monument,” Metzler said. “We also want it to represent everyone’s own different experience with the pandemic.”
The project stands on three key pillars: honor all frontline workers who served during the pandemic, remember those who died and the resilience of humankind to “make through” this global crisis, Metzler said.
“That’s all frontline workers. Not just nurses and doctors, but people that work in the grocery stores and those who delivered Amazon packages,” she said. “So many people risked a lot during the pandemic for all of us to keep society going.”
The initiative has support from the Chicago Department of Public Health, whose commissioner, Dr. Olusimbo Ige, also serves on the COVID-19 Monument Commission board.
“The choice to memorialize essential workers, first responders and health care professionals who kept us going through the pandemic is an apt one,” the health department’s public information officer Jacob Martin said in an emailed statement. “We will support the project through promotion and advocacy where we can.”
In addition to the physical monument, a virtual memory garden was launched two weeks ago to allow people to honor loved ones and frontline workers by planting a digital “dandelion” and share stories. Metzler said she’s also hoping for a garden of real dandelions near the monument to decorate the space in the summertime.
A global competition to select a poem to be read at the monument’s dedication ceremony launches Saturday, with the winning poet laureate earning a $4,000 prize. Those interested in participating in the poetry competition can visit the COVID-19 Monument Project website after Saturday for submission guidelines. The winning poem will be featured on the website “in perpetuity,” Metzler said.
Hansen envisions more than just a memorial space for the medical district’s broader park development.
“Our vision for this park is not just to look back on the past, but really to create a space that fosters hope, connection and well-being for generations to come,” Hansen said. “We see a big part of this park being around the mental health of all of those over 90,000 people who come through the Illinois Medical District every day.”
Archive
The digital rendering image of the COVID-19 memorial monument, with dandelion flowers and COVID-19 virus shape inspired sculptures. Credit: Privded/Covid-19 Monument Commission based on concept by Casey Schachner
NEAR WEST SIDE — When art historian and museum curator Sally Metzler envisioned a monument to honor those affected by COVID-19, she wasn’t sure where it would stand.
Meanwhile, the Illinois Medical District had already designated space for a park of wellness and healing at the confluence of four hospitals. Through a mutual contact, Metzler met Allyson Hansen, the medical district’s CEO and executive director, to discuss their ideas.
“We always knew we wanted a park at Ogden, Damen and Polk because it’s the center of the district,” Hansen said. “It’s one place that all of most of our hospitals are looking down on or crossing over regularly. … We thought, what a perfect location, what a perfect tribute to our ecosystem, which is health care.”
The result is the COVID-19 Memorial Monument of Honor, Remembrance & Resilience, a 25-foot stainless steel sculpture to be placed at 2023 W. Ogden Ave., between Stroger Hospital and Jesse Brown VA Medical Center.
The monument is designed by Casey Schachner, a sculpture professor at Georgia Southern University selected after an international competition. Her concept merges two powerful symbols: the dandelion flower and the COVID-19 virus, both sharing a rounded, spiked form.
“There are 200 different types of dandelions on earth and they grow everywhere in the world,” Metzler said. “It’s this inclusivity of the concept where it coalesces both part of the virus but more of a flower rending to give someone hope [that] really resonated with us.”
A dedication ceremony for the monument is planned for October, though Metzler noted that an exact date is pending because of construction schedules. The park’s first phase is expected to be complete by early 2026, with additional phases depending on funding, Hansen said. The Illinois Medical District plans to get community feedback on the park’s theme and is still deciding on a name, she said.
Metzler said the monument project raised about a half million dollars through grassroots efforts toward the estimated total cost of more than $2 million. The IMD park development has secured separate funding in part through grants, with $1.2 million planned for park construction, Hansen said. The total cost of the project is estimated at $5 million, Hansen said.
The monument design will feature approximately five flower stalks that will glow in different colors at night. Metzler said the monument will be open to the public 24/7.
“We want Chicago to be very proud that we are the home for this global monument,” Metzler said. “We also want it to represent everyone’s own different experience with the pandemic.”
The project stands on three key pillars: honor all frontline workers who served during the pandemic, remember those who died and the resilience of humankind to “make through” this global crisis, Metzler said.
“That’s all frontline workers. Not just nurses and doctors, but people that work in the grocery stores and those who delivered Amazon packages,” she said. “So many people risked a lot during the pandemic for all of us to keep society going.”
The initiative has support from the Chicago Department of Public Health, whose commissioner, Dr. Olusimbo Ige, also serves on the COVID-19 Monument Commission board.
“The choice to memorialize essential workers, first responders and health care professionals who kept us going through the pandemic is an apt one,” the health department’s public information officer Jacob Martin said in an emailed statement. “We will support the project through promotion and advocacy where we can.”
In addition to the physical monument, a virtual memory garden was launched two weeks ago to allow people to honor loved ones and frontline workers by planting a digital “dandelion” and share stories. Metzler said she’s also hoping for a garden of real dandelions near the monument to decorate the space in the summertime.
A global competition to select a poem to be read at the monument’s dedication ceremony launches Saturday, with the winning poet laureate earning a $4,000 prize. Those interested in participating in the poetry competition can visit the COVID-19 Monument Project website after Saturday for submission guidelines. The winning poem will be featured on the website “in perpetuity,” Metzler said.
Hansen envisions more than just a memorial space for the medical district’s broader park development.
“Our vision for this park is not just to look back on the past, but really to create a space that fosters hope, connection and well-being for generations to come,” Hansen said. “We see a big part of this park being around the mental health of all of those over 90,000 people who come through the Illinois Medical District every day.”
