You know how your smartphone will select a random “memory” for you on your newsfeed? A glimpse of some long forgotten life event or gathering? Well that happened to me a few days ago when this picture (immediately below) jumped into view. Suddenly I am transported to a decade ago and the early days of our business. It was intense, sometimes very challenging, trying to blend paint into a satisfying shape on a moving object (doors and elevators open a LOT!) . Taking a look back in time to the learning process on elevator (and door) disguises is still so gratifying though. The goals and strategies have not changed, but our methods certainly have.  Back then, all elevators were hand painted - a creative process that evolved before our eyes. Challenging yes, but it was also fun.

Clients were happy with the results, residents smiled and engaged with us (since we were also part of their entertainment while we painted!)  BUT, as regards the day to day function of the care home, we were in the way too much. Staff didn’t enjoy opening a door to find half a person standing on a ladder for one thing (or jumping off in the nick of time!).  Paint took some time to dry, so we were always wary of residents or staff landing on it and ruining their clothing, but mostly, it was the time it took to complete a project - at least to our satisfaction. Check out some of our early work below to get a sense of our evolution:

The objectives and details we focused on back then remain the same today and these are:

• to bring the “look and feel of home” to the nursing facility environment.

• to “disappear” the elevator(s) that can be a stimulus for exit seeking behaviour and anxiety within the memory care community.

• to eliminate the shiny, reflective elevator surface that can cause confusion for some residents with a form of dementia.

• to provide the necessary contrast between painted objects, so that the elements in the design are easily perceived by residents to make the illusion work effectively.

More early painted elevators

On to the present! The wrap revolution

Just a few examples in our collection. Some of our early painted work has been transferred to wrap material and other designs have been hand-crafted another way - on computer, directly to wrap! Along with the benefits listed above, elevator door wraps have the advantage of being widely available to our clients all across North America. They come with an instructional video to make it as easy as possible. If clients in our service area (Southwestern Ontario, Canada) want us to install, the wrapped-door procedure still takes us much less time than the painted versions, (which means less disruption to the care home).

We love helping our clients choose wraps that blend harmoniously with their décor for a pleasing, integrated look.

Though we have nostalgia for the early days of our business, it is better still to have the opportunity to engage with care homes from far flung places like Newfoundland to California and all points in between.

Looking forward to collaborating with new clients, in new destinations, as we work together to make Art WORK!

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