What started as a simple idea to add a special touch of decoration for a group of long-term care residents quickly escalated into something much more recently.
Ultimately, it became a fully realized art installation at Madrona Grove — the long-term and rehabilitative care portion of Rose Villa continuing care retirement community in Milwaukie, OR.
Madrona Grove opened in 2022, and residents and staff wanted something extraordinary for the decor, according to Molly Watts, Rose Villa’s marketing manager.
“Staff knew they wanted to do something special,” Watts told McKnight’s Long-Term Care News. “In our independent living community, we have several working artists. They came forward and said, ‘We’d like to be a part of this.’ … The collaboration then extended because we have so many working artists who know people outside of the Rose Villa community — real artists who had quilts sitting around in storage.”
The fabric artists were excited to have their art pieces permanently featured in Madrona Grove’s newly formed art installation. Rose Villa residents also contributed their own pieces, some of which were made in the CCRC’s own art facilities.
The sensory experience of long-term care residents was front-and-center during planning for the installation.
“We did a deep dive into how aging affects the way we experience colors, texture and shapes and were very intentional about the pieces we considered,” said Jo Noble, an artist and member of the decor committee. “We set out to use art to create a feeling of familiarity, comfort and warmth.”
A number of these pieces were created by Rose Villa residents through the Opening Minds Through Art program, which was designed for enriching the lives of residents battling cognitive decline. While that program was forced to pause during the COVID-19 pandemic, plans are in the works to bring it back.
The art on display has continued to evolve over time, with several Rose Villa residents contributing — including residents who would later go on to live in the same place they’d so beautifully decorated. Photography and paintings are currently mixed in with the primarily quilted installation.
Other eldercare communities should “100%” pursue similar decorative art installations if possible, Watts said.
“It’s just been so positive. It was positive for independent living, it was positive for people outside of Rose Villa who may never have known anything about a senior living community… and, of course, our residents within the 24-hour supportive care community — Madrona Grove — are the ultimate beneficiaries of all of this really good work.”
