Normality murals
The Kinder- und Jugendklinik Freiburg is a new pediatric hospital that opened its doors at the end of 2024. The architects aimed to give the design a supportive function, contributing to the healing process and the overall well-being of patients and staff. They followed the design process guided by the idea of normality: the notion that the familiar, the ordinary, can bring calm and thereby aid recovery.
In line with this architectural psychology approach, I was asked to continue thinking and propose solutions for the further graphic decoration of the interior. The result was an interactive wall in the entrance hall and a series of wall illustrations for waiting areas, patient and treatment rooms.
In an absurdly humorous way, elements from the immediate surroundings (the city of Freiburg, the Black Forest, and the Rhine region) were merged into surreal compositions. They evoke a sense of recognition for what is familiar, yet at the same time wonder and delight through the impossible, unexpected combinations.
Humbleberries spread across the ceiling and walls, designed to gently distract patients during treatment. The illustrations are applied with special foils, ensuring long-term durability against both eager little hands and regular hospital cleaning routines.
Out plumes with birds formed like their seeds, bend in the wind. Passersby make the birds startle through motion-sensor detection above the screen. This 4 by 2.6 meters interactive wall is located in the hospital’s entrance hall and also serves as a display for all parties that contributed to the creation of the new children’s hospital.
Freiburg was one of the first cities in the world to have a fully electrified, energy-neutral district. I imagined plants growing out of power sockets, sprouting solar-panel buds that, in turn, feed energy back into the outlet. The circle is complete. Here, plug parrots make themselves at home.
A few of the wall papers for in the patient rooms
