BC Children’s Hospital’s centre for health complexity
Scope of work
Art Curation, Art Program/Collection Building from planning to installation & handover documentation.
Client
BC Children’s Hospital Foundation
Location
Vancouver, Canada
Year
Ongoing
Team
Anabella Alfonzo, Principal, Lead Art Consultant & Curator
Julie Verville, Project Manager, Art + Architecture Integration
Alannah Clamp, Curatorial Manager
Zoe Yang, Curatorial Assistant
Camilla Coates, Design & Visual Communications Lead
Images
The renderings shown (courtesy of Diamond Schmitt Architects) are preliminary designs, and the final designs may change. The artworks shown are placeholders only.
The BC Children’s Hospital’s centre for health complexity is a new purpose-built facility supporting children and youth living with complex health conditions, along with their families and caregivers. The centre, slated to open in 2028, is being built at Slocan Street and E 21st Avenue in Vancouver and will be a program of BC Children’s Hospital.
Aartplace is working with BC Children’s Hospital Foundation and the Provincial Health Services Authority (PHSA) to develop a comprehensive art program for the new centre, from early visioning and curatorial framework development through artist selection and the implementation of integrated art commissions throughout the facility.
Shaped through engagement with patients, families, caregivers, and staff, the program is grounded in accessibility, sensory awareness, and careful integration within the architecture — recognizing the diverse mobility, perceptual, and emotional needs of the community it will serve.
The project is being developed in close collaboration with HOST Consulting — an Indigenous-led consulting firm comprised of members of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh nations whose unceded territories host the city of Vancouver — and creates opportunities for artists with disabilities; expanding authorship and representation within a health care setting.
Currently in progress, the art program is being thoughtfully shaped to support a welcoming and deeply human care environment.
Artist call update:
More than 200 artists from across BC and the Yukon responded to the Artist Roster Open Call for the new BC Children’s Hospital centre for health complexity.
We’re deeply grateful for the time, care and thought reflected in every submission, and delighted to congratulate the artists selected for the roster.
The roster will support future murals, window and glass artworks, and wall-based/framed artworks throughout the new centre.
We’re looking forward to the next stages of this meaningful project!
Please note that selected artists will be contacted directly.
Thank you!
