Marius Valdes
MUSC Shawn Jenkins Children's Hospital Environmental Art

Site Specific

Commissioned | Professional

Why did you make this work:
A new children's hospital needed large environmental illustrations that would make young patients feel less afraid when they visited for emergency or routine visits. The illustrations also served as visual landmarks so parents could find their way back and forth easier. Each area was themed including "Animals of South Carolina", "Friendly Frogs", and "Heroes". They wanted lots of fun characters.

How was the illustration used:
Wall murals in the main elevator area, the cafeteria hallway, and the emergency room area.

How did you make this work:
After meeting with the art committee for the hospital it was agreed that using hundreds of different characters would allow the patients to become immersed in the art and for the therapists and nurses to develop activities such as "Find the Animal" that would help pass time for patients. I doodled my characters with sharpie and then redrew them digitally to allow for color and sizing.

Commissioner Name :
Betsy McMillan
Commissioner Company :
Medical University of South Carolina Children's Hospital

Social Media:
twitter.com/zoovaldes
facebook.com/zoovaldes
instagram.com/zoovaldes

Personal Website:
mariusvaldes.com


Biography:
Marius Valdes is an artist, illustrator, and educator in Columbia, South Carolina in the USA. His work has been recognized by numerous industry competitions including Communication Arts, HOW, Print, American Illustration, Creative Quarterly, and UCDA. Valdes is most known for creating animal based character design and illustration. He is an Associate Professor at The University of South Carolina.

Share