University of Maryland Medical Center
LOCATION Baltimore City / Baltimore, Maryland
SERVICES Collaborative Design, Strategy
PARTNERS Annie Howe Papercuts
In early 2020 we began collaborating with local Baltimore artist Annie Howe to create artwork for the new Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Unit at the University of Maryland Medical Center.
It is a groundbreaking unit with a focus on trauma-informed care. Annie was selected as the artist to create all the wall murals for the entire unit, including common areas, staff areas, patient rooms, and bathrooms. The team designing the unit consisted of hospital staff, nurses, doctors, therapists, Principal Architect Kevin Day, and Capital Project Manager at UMMC Bret Elam. They wanted the artwork to fill the unit and make a calming, nurturing space that felt special and welcoming. The funding for the artwork was provided by Baltimore Office of Promotion & the Arts Public Art program. Annie applied for the opportunity through BOPA and was brought in as construction was beginning. She then hired Reidy Creative for consultation on construction documents, color selection, graphic rendering mockups, and translating her papercuts into the correct scale.
ABOUT THE PARTNER
Annie Howe is a celebrated multimedia paper cut artist based in Baltimore, Maryland.
Her intricate papercuts are used for a variety of projects including illustration, surface design, and three-dimensional work.
After graduating from the Maryland Institute College of Art with a BFA in Fiber, she worked in community arts for many years, creating and contributing to the Baltimore art community with large-scale puppetry and shadow puppets. As her love for storytelling grew through this large medium, she found her focus as an artist shifting from large 3D objects to that of the smaller, more intimate medium of paper.
She founded Annie Howe Papercuts in 2010, creating handmade papercuts for businesses, publications, private collections, and public art projects.
Annie has created work for numerous organizations and businesses including Anthropologie, T. Rowe Price, Neighborhood Design Center, Baltimore Office of Promotion & the Arts, and the University of Maryland Medical Center.