The design was created after a workshop with patients to explore their individual journeys by painting rivers to identifying visual metaphors to describe different emotional states or stages of recovery. Combining the design elements and the Japanese origin of the Kawa model of Occupational Therapy, I designed the mural to depict the different states within the river’s journey.

The mural is between the lounge and the dining room, and opposite the clinic doors where patients are weighed. The original mural (as pictured) depicted the recovery tree, and although we wanted something new and brighter, we really wanted to keep the wall as a therapeutic tool for reflection. I wanted to create a mural that was hopeful and colourful without being too overstimulating, and offered a sense of hope in a space that often feels very restrictive and away from the outside world. Bringing a sense of the outside in, and creating a piece of art that patients could use to reflect on their personal journeys within occupational therapy.

The outline was sketched onto the wall and turned into a huge painting by numbers, to encourage all patients to be able to engage with the painting process through individual sessions.