CREATING ART WITH
PURPOSE
The Haas Brothers + Children's National Hospital
ARTISTS SPREADING JOY
“Kids don’t deserve pain or anxiety or any of the things that might be happening when they enter a hospital.” – The Haas Brothers
The artist duo of Simon and Nikolai Haas are fraternal twin brothers who partnered with RxART in 2022 to design, fabricate, and install a playful sculpture in the lobby of Children’s National Hospital in Washington, D.C. RxART’s fourth project with the hospital, the artwork is titled Tree To Be Me and features a 14-foot palm tree made of marble and beading, as well as a multicolored, hand-beaded monkey perched atop one of the tree’s swooping branches.
Motivated by Nikolai’s experience of bringing his two-year-old son to a hospital for surgery, the brothers prioritized humor and fun when developing the artwork. Nikolai had found these were the only two things that successfully cheered his son up during the experience. At Children’s National, the sculpture’s sense of fun and silliness are achieved through the monkey’s cartoonish body and comically casual posture, in addition to the happy unexpectedness of encountering a rainbowed monkey within a yellow-leafed palm tree—all in the middle of a hospital stairwell.
“We believe art has the unique ability to bring joy to any setting,” attests Martha Parra, former 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.”
GIVING BACK THROUGH ART
For the Haas Brothers, the context in which their art is displayed and viewed makes a difference. Knowing that hospital buildings are generally not aesthetically appealing, the artists find a distinct sense of purpose when presenting artwork within medical settings. Unlike in a gallery space, their work, when placed in a hospital, takes on new, meaningful intention: here it serves as a positive distraction for patients, providers, and employees from the stresses of hospital goings-on.
“I am just imagining myself sitting in the hospital waiting and looking at that thing,” says Simon. “If you can look at [our] sculpture and be joyful or sit and wonder about how it was made, that’s a great portion of taking your mind off what you’re in the hospital for.” Read the full article here.
Listen to the Haas Brothers speak more about the importance of including art in hospitals and giving back through art:
BUILDING CONNECTION BETWEEN PEOPLE AND OBJECTS
To realize the project, the artists worked with women artisans in South Africa and California. Both groups of artisans call themselves the Haas Sisters, and it was the sisters in Cape Town, South Africa who lovingly beaded the sculptural monkey. The intricate leaves of the tree, meanwhile, were created by the Haas Sisters of Lost Hills in California’s Central Valley.
“Our work is about joy and building a connection between people and objects, so we think [the hospital is] an ideal setting for that,” says Simon. Read the full article here.
Simon Haas and Lost Hills Sisters beading the yellow leaves of the palm tree.
Detail of beaded leaf.
Cape Town Haas Sisters
The collaborative nature of the Haas Brothers’ artwork echoes RxART’s core value of knowledge building, which we pursue through our efforts to bridge industries and areas of expertise.
Established in 1870, Children’s National Hospital 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.
The hospital’s endorsement of RxART’s work buoys our mission, enabling us to continue connecting pediatric hospitals across the nation with established artists who care about improving healthcare environments. Our goal extends beyond putting art on the wall; RxART is committed to collaboration in the name of sustaining better patient and healthcare experiences for everyone.
