CHILDREN'S NATIONAL HOSPITAL
THE HAAS BROTHERS
CITY/STATE
Washington, DC
LOCATION IN HOSPITAL
Entrance
INSTALL DATE
2022
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ABOUT THE INSTALLATION
In 2022, RxART collaborated with the Haas Brothers (Simon and Nikolai) on the organization’s first sculptural project and fourth installation at Children’s National Hospital. Here, the artists created Tree To Be Me, a 14-foot sculpture of a palm tree that is host to a brilliantly colored, hand-beaded monkey and is featured in the hospital’s main entrance. The monkey was beaded by the Haas Sisters, women artisans in Cape Town, South Africa, while the intricate leaves of the tree were crafted by the Haas Sisters of Lost Hills in California’s Central Valley.
Motivated by Nikolai’s experience of accompanying his two-year-old son to a hospital for surgery, the brothers prioritized a sense of enjoyment when creating the artwork. Nikolai had discovered that humor and fun were the only things that successfully cheered his son up during the experience, so this sculpture exudes joy and silliness through the element of surprise—who is expecting to find a rainbow-colored monkey dangling from a tree in the middle of a hospital?
“We believe art has the unique ability to bring joy to any setting,” attested Martha Parra, Vice President of Clinical Support Services at Children’s National. “This incredible sculpture promises to be a source of inspiration and wonder for all of our patients, families, and employees.”
This project was made possible through the generous support of the Rallis Foundation, Betsee Isenberg, and Citizens of Humanity.
Learn more about the impact of this project here.
ABOUT THE HOSPITAL
Children’s National Hospital, based in Washington, D.C., is transforming pediatric medicine for all children. Children’s National has been designated twice as a Magnet® hospital, demonstrating the highest standards of nursing and patient care delivery. This pediatric academic health system offers expert care through a convenient, community-based primary care network and specialty outpatient centers in the D.C. metropolitan area, including the Maryland and Northern Virginia suburbs. Children’s National is home to the Children’s National Research Institute and Sheikh Zayed Institute for Pediatric Surgical Innovation and is the nation’s seventh-highest NIH-funded children’s hospital. It is recognized for its expertise and innovation in pediatric care and as a strong voice for children through advocacy at the local, regional, and national levels.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Simon and Nikolai Haas (b. 1984, Austin, TX) are twin brothers whose work lives outside of traditional artistic boundaries, creating a playful world that merges art, fashion, film, and design. They live and work in Los Angeles.
Their first solo museum show opened at the Bass Museum of Art in Miami, FL in 2018. Their work is held in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY; the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum, New York, NY; the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, CA; and the Rhode Island School of Design Museum, Providence, RI.
