Hospital Artist-in-Residence Program
Hospital Artist-In-Residence Carmen Rios at BronxCare Health System, Family Medicine, and her art cart.
Drawing lesson for Infusion patient at Mount Sinai Hospital with Hospital Artist-In-Residence Sascha Mallon.
Proud patient and first-time artist shows off the result of her "art day" in chemotherapy, Mount Sinai West.
The Creative Center's Hospital Artist-In-Residence Program serves patients, families, caregivers, and healthcare staff in the New York City Area and beyond. Our 10 current Hospital Artists-In-Residence serve over 3,000 patients each year at multiple hospital sites and develop supportive relationships with countless staff and caregivers.
Our Hospital Artists-In-Residence are professional artists trained by The Creative Center to work in a multitude of healthcare settings: oncology and bone marrow transplant units, infusion (chemotherapy) clinics, dementia and geriatric units, cardiology, hospice, palliative care, long-term care, and rehabilitation centers. They engage patients in conversations about art, as well as in art-making, getting them interested and involved in creating a variety of different projects. Artists-in-Residents work with patients individually at chairside or bedside while they are receiving treatment, and also in small group settings held in waiting or reception areas.
Artists-in-Residence are supplied with a large variety of materials allowing patients to explore different mediums. They can choose to write poetry, design beaded necklaces, paint with watercolors, and discover a multitude of paper, fiber, drawing and painting and other art forms. For those patients who have many hours of wait time and treatment, working with a Hospital Artist-In-Residence helps the time go by quickly and meaningfully, helping them to express their feelings around their physical and emotional states while discovering their own creative resources as a tool to meet the challenges of illness.
Benefits for Patients
Beyond providing much-needed relief and distraction from the anxiety, pain, and isolation that is often associated with a hospital stay, the Hospital Artist-In-Residence Program provides patients with a way to become absorbed in their own creative process. Patients and staff quickly discover that they are more than their disease as they begin to explore art-making, some for the first time in their lives.
Benefits for Hospitals
By providing one-on-one sessions with caring and supportive artists, The Creative Center's programs augment the patient support services already in place in most hospitals. The artwork that is created provides a lively discussion between patients and hospital staff on a more individual and personal basis. Hospital nursing and support staff often feel proud to be able to offer patients access to a very special resource, and in many cases, have provided exhibition space for patient artwork.
read OUR 2002 UNITED Hospitals fund program Evaluation
Hospital Artist-In-Residence Sascha Mallon leads Mount Sinai's Oncology team in a Shibori tie-dye workshop.
Staff showing some love at a "just for staff" Valentine's Day Card Workshop.
Hospital Artist-In-Residence brings her signature smile and a abundant creativity to a group of staff at Woodhull Hospital.
Staff at Bellevue Hospital get inspired by a variety of high quality materials as they begin work on beading projects.
A group of CNA's take some time to team build and create keepsake boxes at Parker Jewish Institute for Health Care and Rehabilitation, part of the Long Island Jewish Medical Center.
Staff Workshops Provided by Hospital Artists-In-Residence
Workshops for healthcare staff are provided by both Hospital Artists-In-Residence as well as other professional artists. Staff get the undivided attention of our artists who design workshops that are engaging, relaxing, and time-sensitive to their busy schedules. They are surveyed after each workshop, providing valuable feedback to hospital administrators and The Creative Center, helping us to develop art experiences that are meaningful and useful to them.
"This was really fun! I'd love to have an art break every day- we should turn the staff lounge into an art studio!"
“I never thought about trying to do this. I 'm going to have something to teach my daughter when I go home- and we'll hang MY painting on the refrigerator this time!”
“It’s too bad the others missed out on this. I'm glad the artist left some beading kits for the nurses who weren't able to come- the rest of us will show them how!”
“I can’t wait to do this again. Everyone went back to work in a great mood!”
“The artist taught us so many ways to make cards- I'll never buy a greeting card again! I gave mine away to the patient I've been taking care of all day- and brought her one of the kits so she could make her own."