Cure-ator: Brightening Spaces, Lifting Spirits
Hospital visitors linger over a cheerful five panel black-and-white mural of giant pandas. A family crowds together for a group photo in front of a huge canvas of cherry blossoms painted in vivid detail. Greg Scott, gallery curator at Children’s National, has made a career out of making others feel better through art.
Scott joined us nearly 25 years ago as a visual artist-in-residence. He engaged patients and families in making colorful murals, watercolor paintings and other fun projects with a handy supply cart on wheels. He also hosted workshops and facilitated art installations around the main campus.
“Even just the act of appreciating art is calming and helps people relax during times of stress. I see the impact every day,” he says. Scott recalls a young patient who often searched his hospital unit for the “art man.” Together they painted wooden trucks and made tie-dye T-shirts. “A nurse told me this little boy was in the hospital because his parents had abused him,” Scott says. “He walked with a limp from his injuries. I decided then that we were going to fill up his cup, one piece of art at a time.”
Scott, a third-generation Washingtonian, knows that art gives people a reason to smile and helps them escape their worries. During his time at Children’s National, he has created countless art galleries and hosted hundreds of exhibitions and receptions. He is part of our Creative and Therapeutic Arts Services team, a dedicated group of arts-in-healing professionals. “Even just the act of appreciating art is calming and helps people relax during times of stress,” he says. “I see the impact every day.”
Galleries brighten many Children’s National locations, including the Research & Innovation Campus and regional outpatient center in Prince George’s County. Portraits of young children from Ghana greet visitors at Friendship Heights. Stunning wildlife photography and a series of paintings, “Retrospective: Celebrating the Beauty of Nature” by Jamie Downs, in the Gallery Presented by Atlantic Coast Mortgage delights families on their way to the registration desk at the main campus.
People often stop Scott to tell him how much they love what they see. They always ask what’s coming next. “My parents were people who always tried to make others feel good,” he says. “I have spent my life trying to do the same with art. It brings people together. It can change someone’s life or just help them breathe a little better. For me, that’s what it’s all about.”
Scott joined us nearly 25 years ago as a visual artist-in-residence. He engaged patients and families in making colorful murals, watercolor paintings and other fun projects with a handy supply cart on wheels. He also hosted workshops and facilitated art installations around the main campus.
“Even just the act of appreciating art is calming and helps people relax during times of stress. I see the impact every day,” he says. Scott recalls a young patient who often searched his hospital unit for the “art man.” Together they painted wooden trucks and made tie-dye T-shirts. “A nurse told me this little boy was in the hospital because his parents had abused him,” Scott says. “He walked with a limp from his injuries. I decided then that we were going to fill up his cup, one piece of art at a time.”
Scott, a third-generation Washingtonian, knows that art gives people a reason to smile and helps them escape their worries. During his time at Children’s National, he has created countless art galleries and hosted hundreds of exhibitions and receptions. He is part of our Creative and Therapeutic Arts Services team, a dedicated group of arts-in-healing professionals. “Even just the act of appreciating art is calming and helps people relax during times of stress,” he says. “I see the impact every day.”
Galleries brighten many Children’s National locations, including the Research & Innovation Campus and regional outpatient center in Prince George’s County. Portraits of young children from Ghana greet visitors at Friendship Heights. Stunning wildlife photography and a series of paintings, “Retrospective: Celebrating the Beauty of Nature” by Jamie Downs, in the Gallery Presented by Atlantic Coast Mortgage delights families on their way to the registration desk at the main campus.
People often stop Scott to tell him how much they love what they see. They always ask what’s coming next. “My parents were people who always tried to make others feel good,” he says. “I have spent my life trying to do the same with art. It brings people together. It can change someone’s life or just help them breathe a little better. For me, that’s what it’s all about.”
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