Hospital Artist-in-Residence Program
The Creative Center has brought the expressive arts directly into healthcare environments by placing individual artists on-site for year-long residencies.
Through a wide range of art forms, materials, and creative activations, each Artist-in-Residence becomes part of the culture of their healthcare site. Their approach is trauma-informed and person-centered, supporting patients, families, healthcare staff, and the broader hospital community while fostering connection, expression, and emotional well-being through the creative process.
The Creative Center’s Hospital Artist-in-Residence Program currently serves patients, caregivers, and staff across the New York City area and beyond. Artists-in-Residence work in infusion suites, waiting rooms, inpatient units, staff lounges, and wellness areas, integrating creativity into everyday moments of care. Our eight Artists-in-Residence engage with more than 9,000 New Yorkers each year across multiple hospital sites.
FOR OVER 25 YEARS
Our Hospital Artists-In-Residence
Professional artists, distinguished in their craft, our Hospital Artists-in-Residence utilize a trauma-informed, inclusive practice and are supported by specialized training, allowing them to move sensitively within clinical environments while preserving a distinctly human, creative space.
AIRs are trained by The Creative Center to work in a multitude of healthcare settings, including oncology and bone marrow transplant units, infusion (chemotherapy) clinics, dementia and geriatric units, cardiology, hospice, palliative care, long-term care, and rehabilitation centers. Artists-in-Residents work with patients both individually and in group settings.
Our staff-facing Hospital Artists-In-Residence provide art workshops and activations designed and implemented specifically for healthcare workers, which play a crucial role in supporting the mental health and wellbeing of hospital staff. These workshops provide special opportunities for team building, relaxation, awakening of creativity, and increasing a sense of community in the workplace.
“I did NOT know I had it in me.”
— Palliative care patient
Benefits to Patients
Emotional support and stress relief
Art-making provides a calming, grounding outlet during times of uncertainty, pain, or isolation.
Restoration of identity and agency
Patients are invited to make choices, express themselves, and reconnect with parts of their identity that exist beyond illness.
Connection and companionship
Artists-in-Residence offer trauma-informed, relational support that helps patients feel seen as whole people, not just as patients.
Reduced sense of isolation
Creative engagement eases loneliness and helps patients feel more connected to loved ones, staff, and the hospital community.
Positive experiences within the hospital
Patients often describe art sessions as bright spots in the day which helps to ease treatment experiences and improve overall mood.
Accessibility for all abilities and backgrounds
Programming is adaptable, welcoming, and free of cost with no prior art experience required.
Benefits to HOSPITAL STAFF
Emotional relief and stress reduction
Engaging in or witnessing art-making provides a pause from the intensity of clinical work, helping staff reset, get grounded, and recharge.
Improved workplace morale and climate
Creative presence and relational care help infuse warmth, positivity, and connection into clinical hospital settings.
Support for compassionate, person-centered care
Artists-in-Residence help reinforce the understanding of patients as whole people, strengthening empathy and therapeutic connection.
Enhanced communication and teamwork
Collaborative interactions around art-making creates shared moments of humanity between staff and administrators.
Reduced feelings of burnout and compassion fatigue
Access to creative engagement and meaningful reflection supports emotional resilience among staff.
Integration of wellness practices into clinical environments
The presence of arts-in-health programming signals an institutional commitment to staff well-being and a healing-centered culture.
read OUR 2002 UNITED Hospitals fund program Evaluation
Hospital Artist-In-Residence Sascha Mallon leads Mount Sinai's Oncology team in a Shibori tie-dye workshop.
Staff showing some love at a "just for staff" Valentine's Day Card Workshop.
Hospital Artist-In-Residence brings her signature smile and a abundant creativity to a group of staff at Woodhull Hospital.
Staff at Bellevue Hospital get inspired by a variety of high quality materials as they begin work on beading projects.
A group of CNA's take some time to team build and create keepsake boxes at Parker Jewish Institute for Health Care and Rehabilitation, part of the Long Island Jewish Medical Center.
Staff Workshops Provided by Hospital Artists-In-Residence
Workshops for healthcare staff are provided by both Hospital Artists-In-Residence as well as other professional artists. Staff get the undivided attention of our artists who design workshops that are engaging, relaxing, and time-sensitive to their busy schedules. They are surveyed after each workshop, providing valuable feedback to hospital administrators and The Creative Center, helping us to develop art experiences that are meaningful and useful to them.
"This was really fun! I'd love to have an art break every day- we should turn the staff lounge into an art studio!"
“I never thought about trying to do this. I 'm going to have something to teach my daughter when I go home- and we'll hang MY painting on the refrigerator this time!”
“It’s too bad the others missed out on this. I'm glad the artist left some beading kits for the nurses who weren't able to come- the rest of us will show them how!”
“I can’t wait to do this again. Everyone went back to work in a great mood!”
“The artist taught us so many ways to make cards- I'll never buy a greeting card again! I gave mine away to the patient I've been taking care of all day- and brought her one of the kits so she could make her own."
Frequently Asked Questions
Have questions about our Hospital Artist-In-Residence Program?
Take a look at the FAQ or reach out anytime.
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Our Artists-in-Residence offer participatory visual arts-based workshops and individual sessions.
Each Artist-in-Residence is a professional, trained teaching artist, bringing expertise across a range of art forms, such as painting, jewelry-making, fiber arts, collage, and other adaptable mediums suited to the healthcare environment and participants’ individual needs.
AIRs tailor their engagement to the moment. They may offer a two-minute creative encounter to spark conversation and connection, guide a 30-minute activity that introduces a new technique or creates a meaningful takeaway, or collaborate on a larger community project over hours, days, or even weeks. Their work is responsive, flexible, and designed to meet participants where they are, emotionally, physically, and within the unique culture of each hospital environment.
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If you are interested in bringing a Creative Center Artist-in-Residence to your site, you can contact our team directly to discuss goals, population, and program logistics.
We collaborate closely with hospital leadership and staff to design a program that fits the needs and rhythms of your environment, including scheduling, scope of services, training, and supervision.
Programs are offered through a contract-based model and can be implemented in inpatient, outpatient, oncology, palliative care, rehabilitation, and staff wellness settings.
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The Creative Center’s Artists-in-Residence are distinguished by a deeply relational, patient-led approach that prioritizes the creative process over the final product. Rather than simply offering activities, AIRs build meaningful connections over time, creating safe spaces where patients feel seen as whole people.
Their work is grounded in trauma-informed, inclusive practice and supported by specialized training in illness, aging, grief, and hospital culture, allowing them to move sensitively within clinical environments while preserving a distinctly human space.
AIRs adapt art-making for any level of need, meeting people exactly where they are. With ongoing supervision, reflective practice, and collaboration with hospital teams, they bring warmth, curiosity and agency into vulnerable moments, helping patients reconnect with identity, creativity, and meaning during treatment.
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If you’d like to learn more about The Creative Center’s programs, partner with us, or inquire about bringing an Artist-in-Residence to your hospital or organization, we’d love to hear from you!
You can reach our team by phone at 646.465.5338 or by email at info@thecreativecenter.org, and someone will get back to you as soon as possible.
Whether you are a patient, caregiver, healthcare professional, artist, or supporter, we welcome your questions and look forward to connecting.
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The Creative Center’s residencies are offered through a contract-based pricing model designed to be sustainable, transparent, and responsive to the needs of each partner site.
Program costs are determined by the scope of service, including hours of on-site presence, supervision, program coordination, training, materials, and evaluation. This model ensures consistency of staffing, high-quality oversight, and equitable access for participants, while allowing hospitals and organizations to budget annually for comprehensive arts-in-health programming.