Waterfall House
Birmingham Children’s Hospital
Birmingham Children’s Hospital is our latest project. We were asked to create something to fit in the atrium of their new building. The space in question was a large wall measuring 6 meters high by 3 meters wide. The space had two main vantage points:
- The top third of the wall, which would could be seen from a first-floor waiting room.
- The lower third of the wall, which was accessed from the main ground floor waiting area.
The hospital staff wanted an activity that would distract and entertain patients and their families in both spaces while they waited to be seen. The end result needed to be engaging across a variety of ages and abilities and had to be mindful of infection control.
So we put our thinking caps on!
As their new building was called Waterfall House the space was perfect for us to design the hospital their very own internal waterfall. But this waterfall had to reflect Birmingham so it would resonate with the patients. So it made sense to consider the waterways in and around Birmingham and in particular the lock gates punctuated throughout the canals.
This would be the perfect backdrop for our waterfall.
But what added value could we bring to this backdrop to hold the attention and interest of the patients and their families as well as add a bit of magic.
On the first floor, this was easy. We would create an animated installation of wildlife creatures busying themselves on the banks of the canal. Children would marvel at the whimsical antics of the creatures.
On the ground floor, the main waiting area, we decided to add some extra magic. What if the children could pretend to dance and jump spin in the cascading water and create their own virtual body shapes and patterns? So with the help of code, a computer, and a camera (and of course some of the best digital minds) we created a magical and sparkly interactive waterfall.
Feedback
The feedback has been amazing – and our short film will give you an idea of the success the Waterfall has had for both the families and the staff at Birmingham Children’s Hospital.