A Place for the Guys
A display of retro auto and sports related imagery
We have been asked several times "what murals do you have for our gentleman residents?"
In addressing this omission, we decided that most guys are going to like a sport, some will like the great outdoors and a fishing trip, others will be "handymen" and know the workman's tools of yesteryear. Most will identify with old cars. Sure, these are broad generalizations, but we are talking about memories from the 1960s and 1970s, before the age of computers and other modern recreation.
Something else to consider is the location for this backdrop - the end of a hallway. This area normally poses its own problems for residents in dementia care. When a hallway “dead-ends” with a stairwell exit door, that door (unlocked only by keypad) can be a source of frustration as the resident wonders “where do I go from here?” Lacking a destination, a resident may then proceed into another resident’s room where conflict can occur. So we had to take these issues into consideration with our design.
For a backdrop we used vintage brick, a material that recalls a “man cave” basement or garage or perhaps even a sports bar, for that rugged yet warm atmosphere. This is what we came up with!
A “before and after” of the project
Our client - the administrators of the care home advised that this area of the Memory Care floor is occupied mostly by men. Now there is something of interest to visit on their strolls along this hallway. Just as inviting as the new décor is a lovely big window with some soft seating. All the comforts of home.
The Sports Wall
The sports memorabilia wall is necessarily limited to some of the most popular sports, without any specific teams - as there are too many to highlight. We therefore kept our representation of sports to baseball, hockey and football. showing some classic poses for each sport and its related equipment to spark those happy memories! This is also the wall that is seen first as the resident approaches from the hallway. This becomes a “destination” rather than a “dead-end”.
End of Hall Solutions for Memory Care
This little “jut out” at the end of the hall encompasses the stairwell door which is often a point of frustration for residents. We did our best to “downplay it” in the details of the design knowing that staff and visitors are aware of this point of egress in case of an emergency - and in an emergency, the staff are well trained on safety procedures to evacuate residents if necessary.
For the final pieces of wall space, we added some car related imagery from yesteryear and some old hand tools. All of this imagery - from sports to fishing, cars and tools also make for good “talking points” when family come to visit. They may talk of old family cars, the days when there were gas station “attendants” (what happened to them?!!), camping trips with the family or football games at the t.v. with endless bowls of popcorn. Good times. Let the reminiscing begin!
