The Arizona Cancer Center Chapel (also known as the Soleri Chapel) is an architectural landmark located in the University of Arizona Cancer Center, at 1515 North Campbell Avenue in Tucson, Arizona. It was designed by Italian American architect Paolo Soleri.Holy Modern: Celebrating Tucson's Mid‑century Modern Sacred Spaces, Tucson Historic Preservation Foundation, 2017 History Completed in 1986, the chapel was constructed in commemoration of Soleri’s wife, Colly Soleri, who died of cancer. The chapel was commissioned by the University of Arizona in the 1980s, and has been associated with the University’s Cancer Center since its completion in 1986. That same year, the chapel’s design was featured in the traveling exhibition The Architectural Visions of Paolo Soleri, organized by the Corcoran Gallery of Art. Design The chapel's design is characterized by sand-cast barrel-vaulted concrete ceilings with embedded botanical graphics and reflects the natural environment.Arizona Contractor & Community, Arizona Cancer Center Chapel by Architect Paolo Soleri, Named One of Arizona's Most Endangered Places, 12 December 2023. The chapel consists of 10 ceiling panels, a wall sculpture, decorative bells, and a stained glass window.
Preservation efforts When the Arizona Cancer Center expanded, the patient area, where the chapel is located, was reorganized into research spaces and offices. This change effectively closed the chapel to the public. It was later opened to the public as part of Tucson Modernism Week in 2013. The chapel was featured in the 2017 book Holy Modern and was named "Modern Architectural Classic" by the Tucson Historic Preservation Foundation in 2018.Demion Clinco, 14, October, 2023, Tucson Historic Preservation Foundation letter to Dr. Robert C. Robbins
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Demolition attempt In October 2023, the Tucson Historic Preservation Foundation, learning of the University of Arizona's plans to demolish the chapel, harvested and relocated artistic elements to decorate a new "meditation hallway" in the Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine. The plan was led by the University of Arizona Planning Department and the architecture firm Line and Space.Weil Center will be new home to famous installation, University of Arizona, 21 December 2023: https://healthsciences.arizona.edu/connect/stories/weil-cent er-will-be-new-home-famous-installation The plan included sending the right side of the barrel-vault to the Cosanti Foundation and installing the remnant pieces in a concrete block hallway.
Advocates, including Jim McPherson with the Arizona Preservation Foundation, Demion Clinco with Tucson Historic Preservation Foundation, and elected leaders, including Pima County Supervisor Matt Heinz, and Arizona State Representatives Christopher Mathis and Betty Villegas, appealed to University of Arizona president Robert C. Robbins to pursue an alternative approach that would prevent the destruction of the chapel. In December 2023, the University of Arizona Planning Department announced its intent to proceed with the destruction of the space.Dianna M. Náñez and Carolina Cuellar, Arizona Luminaria, UA plans to dismantle iconic architect Paolo Soleri's hidden-gem chapel in Tucson, 9 December 2023
In December 2023, the chapel was added to Arizona's Most Endangered Places list by the Arizona Preservation Foundation. The Tucson-Pima County Historical Commission unanimously passed a resolution asking for the preservation of the chapel, emphasizing the importance of adhering to Arizona Revised Statute 41-864, and underscoring the responsibility of entities like the University of Arizona in preserving historical and cultural resources.Mark Brodie, KJZZ, Preservationists are trying to save a University of Arizona chapel designed by Paolo Soleri, 19 December 2023
In January 2024, the University of Arizona put the plans to demolish the chapel on "indefinite pause."Wolfe, Ellie, Arizona Daily Star, U of A put move of historic Soleri Chapel on hold after public outcry, 17 January 2024. https://tucson.com/news/local/education/college/university-arizona-paolo-soleri-chapel-tucson-historic-preservation/article_5b003900-b570-11ee-838f-f73c1b7f026f.html During the January 2024 Pima County Board of Supervisors Meeting, Matt Heinz proposed a resolution admonishing the university's decision to ignore the Arizona State Historic Preservation Act.
As of January 2024, the chapel is still at the same location, although it remains closed to the public.
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