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A Separate Peace

The Cahill Meditation Atrium is a place of reflection for people of all faiths.

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Imagine sitting in a quiet forest under a canopy of weathered oaks. Sunlight streams through strands of twisted moss. Water gurgles over small stones in the creek bed. The solitude and the organic surroundings are a refuge, healing and rejuvenating the spirit.

Such peace is what Mayo Clinic's design team had in mind when they created the Cahill Meditation Atrium, the clinic's first indoor space dedicated to the spiritual needs of patients and visitors. The 710-square-foot atrium, which will open in June, is located on the first floor of the Cannaday Building. It was made possible by a gift from Jacksonville residents Lysle and Jean Cahill. Long-time benefactors of Mayo Clinic, the Cahills' philanthropy has supported programs in Alzheimer's disease, pain management, cancer research and the Mayo Clinic Hospital in Jacksonville.

What makes the Cahill Meditation Atrium special is that it provides a haven from the stresses of the outside world and a place of inspiration for people of all faiths. It provides enough room for small gatherings while preserving the intimacy vital for personal reflection.

"The idea was to create meaningful space that provokes people to ideas in a gentle way," says Robert Fontaine, director of Campus Planning. "The elements and design in the room are taken from nature to allow individuals to interpret it for themselves."

The "Healing Garden" art glass wall

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You enter through a carved wooden door flanked by glass panels evoking water and step into a marble-floored foyer. There, resting in a basin of stone and water, is "Interplay," a spiraling steel sculpture created by Virginia sculptor John Safer and donated by him and his wife, Joy. The foyer serves as a transitional area that orients visitors to the quiet atrium beyond.

The atrium is a cocoon of stone, wood and other natural elements. The fabric-paneled walls are dotted with silver-finished medallions. The fabric-covered ceiling forms an architectural "cloud" that provides both a sound buffer and the effect of walking into an embrace, says Fontaine. At the front of the room stands a stone table supported by two trunks of preserved cypress. Above it hangs a chandelier of beeswax candles fitted with lightbulbs.

Along the southern side is "Healing Garden," an art glass wall created by J. Piercey Studios in Orlando and funded by Jacksonville resident and Mayo Clinic benefactor Edna B. Wallace. Large windows behind the wall bathe the glass in light, creating a colorful glow.

"We wanted it to be a warm and peaceful place for reflection," says Fontaine. "Spiritual in its form, materials and imagery."