"The intent (and hope) of the art and architecture program was to uplift the spirit of the patient and the visitor as they arrive here at the hospital, to relieve that initial stress," says Michael Iato, extolling the "humanizing and dignifying experience" of the new space.

Some other fun facts: Architecture firm Perkins + Will ranked #1 last year in Interior Design magazine's Health Care Giants survey, the same year Architect magazine listed it as the "Most Admired Firm in Healthcare." Art in the children's hospital rooms comes in the form of window shades, as artist Jim Boyd drew cues from a local Baltimore tradition of painting the screen doors and windows of one’s row house. Landscape architect Susan Weiler of Olin designed the exterior plantings to echo patterns in the building's vibrant glass façade.

For more info, the hospital has its own website with documentary process videos, including a guest spot from philanthropist, media mogul, and New York City mayor Mike Bloomberg. The building is named for his late mother and the beneficiary of Bloomberg's $120 million gift.

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Public Art at Johns Hopkins