The Soul’s Dispensary
Year Installed: 1995Artist: Livio Saganic
Materials: Granite and Water
Dimensions: 9′ x 7′ x 13.5′
Location: Campbell Library
Latitude & Longitude:
39°42’30.9″N 75°07’07.6″W
The title of Livio Saganic’s sculpture, The Souls’ Dispensary, is derived from an inscription above the library entrance in Thebes, Egypt, from the time of Ramses II, asserting the idea that written material is medicine for the soul. In mythology, water springing from stone holds the power of self-renewal, youth, growth, learning, and birth. All of which may be associated with the role of the library. Granite is a symbol of permanence and stability, whereas running water evokes perpetual change, qualities essential to the library’s mission. The free-form contour of the sculpture is meant to evoke an element of the landscape, whereas the structural interior connects it formally to the library’s architecture.
Artist Livio Saganic
Livio Saganic was born in 1950 and grew up in Vidovici, in the former Yugoslavia, now Croatia. At age 12, he fled with his family to Italy, where they spent two years waiting for political asylum. In 1964 he emigrated to the United States and eventually attended the Pratt Institute and Yale’s MFA. In the 80s, he shifted to public art, creating works internationally. | Learn More
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