Artists brighten Bethesda Place

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This article was published 27/10/2018 (2004 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A local artist collective and Southern Health are hailing as a success a collaborative personal care home project involving the latest dementia care research and a whole lot of acrylic paint.

Seven painters spent six weeks in Bethesda Place this summer transforming the Steinbach facility’s exit doors into colourful works of art.

Client services manager Tamara Burnham, who initiated the project, said disguising locked doors in the dementia care unit reduces anxiety and “exit-seeking behaviour” among residents with Alzheimer’s disease by lending the institutional environment a more home-like feel.

“Their behaviour can get really escalated when they know there’s a door there but it’s locked and they’re not able to open it,” she explained.

Scenes were chosen to create a calming or nostalgic effect, said painters Kim Gwozdz and Marilyn Dueck of South East Artists. Some feature antique bookcases and patterned wallpaper, while others depict scenic and lakeside vistas.

“It’s something that’s been recognized in dementia care for a while now, but maybe has gained popularity or has more research and evidence-based information to promote it,” Burnham said.

Health care companies offer doorway decals for exactly this purpose, “but we really liked the idea of working together with local talent,” Burnham said.

Six doors were painted in total. Artists first developed concept sketches that were vetted by Burnham, then set to work using supplies donated by two local businesses. Artists could donate or be paid for their time.

For some, like Dueck, it was their first time working on such a large scale, while other artists, like Gerald Reddekop, drew on prior experience as a muralist.

Acrylic paint offered several advantages over oils, Gwozdz said, including fewer fumes and a quicker drying time. A clear coat was also added for durability.

When the work was completed, it didn’t take long for staff to begin noticing less exit-seeking behaviour among residents, Burnham said. She characterized feedback from visitors and caregivers as “very positive.”

The project has purely aesthetic value as well, lending more visual interest to long hallways.

“It’s calming to look out a window and see nature,” said Dueck, who partnered with Leona Carnegie to transform a solid exterior door into a verdant spring scene with a large picture window.

Reddekop said he drew on his upbringing in northern Saskatchewan to create an autumn woodland scene, while Gwozdz said the doorway she painted together with Ginette Perron was inspired by the reading rooms of decades past, complete with antique wallpaper and hardcover classics on the bookshelves.