Fall 2019
New hospital features gardens and hundreds of works of art
In the early 1980s, a group of volunteers came together with the purpose of acquiring and hanging art on the then-empty walls of Stanford Hospital. What this group sensed about the power of art — that it could help improve healing — was proven later in studies suggesting that it can substantially affect health outcomes, such as blood pressure, anxiety, intake of pain medications and length of hospital stay.
Today, every new hospital includes art, said Connie Wolf, consulting director of the art program for the new Stanford Hospital: “Integrating art into the hospital environment allows us to think holistically about the healing of the mind, the soul and the spirit.”
The new facility, which will open this fall, places equal value on the restorative qualities of art and nature. It includes 4 acres of outdoor gardens and more than 400 works of original art — all either donated or acquired with private monetary donations.
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