Fred Hutch's enduring partnership with Cornish

As you walk through the Arnold Building at Fred Hutch Cancer Center in Seattle, you may feel like you are visiting an art gallery. This is thanks to a unique, long-standing partnership between Fred Hutch and Cornish College of the Arts that started in 2005. 

“When the [Fred Hutch] Public Health Sciences Division first moved into the Arnold Building, there were what felt like miles of empty white walls,” said Rosemarie Keenan, associate vice president of the Public Health Sciences Division and a longtime supporter of the art partnership.  

A chance encounter between Cornish professor Bonnie Biggs, MFA, and a staff member of the division sparked the idea to use the space for art. Cornish was recently acquired by Seattle University. 

“Bonnie mentioned their annual Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) show and suggested bringing some of the pieces here,” Keenan said.

The idea quickly gained traction and  20 years later, the program remains a fixture at Fred Hutch. This year's BFA Exhibit and selections were held on April 4 and the selected art pieces will be on display beginning 2026 in the Arnold Building.

In addition to the Public Health Sciences Division, the Arnold Building is home to several other research divisions and groups as well as the Wellness Center, which contains a number of specialty clinics including Survivorship, and Employee Health Clinic. 

The annual exhibition and curation process 

Each year in the spring, the Art Task Force visits and selects pieces from the Cornish BFA Exhibition. 

Originally composed exclusively of Public Health Sciences staff, the task force now includes members from Fred Hutch clinical teams and other divisions such as the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Division as more groups have moved into the building.

When selecting the pieces, the task force collaborates with Biggs, aiming to include at least one piece from each graduating student and to thoughtfully place each artwork based on its unique characteristics.

“Bonnie knows the Arnold Building so well by now that she always has a vision for each piece,” said Keenan. “‘These could go in the café,’ or ‘These would work along the curved wall on D level.’ We may have our own ideas, but we rely on her knowledge of both the art and the space.” 

While most of the selected pieces are rotated out following the BFA show’s closing date, some remain at Fred Hutch.  

Connecting art and science 

Beyond aesthetics, the partnership reflects a deeper connection between science and creativity.

“Through the years, I’ve come to appreciate how creative our researchers are,” Keenan said. “They have to identify questions that lead to bigger discoveries. It’s similar to an artist thinking, ‘I have this idea — how do I make it work physically?’”