Photo taken by Donn Jones © 2020 Vanderbilt Medical Center. Rachael making final touches on the “Space Bunnies” mural.

I’m excited to announce that I’ve installed the 22 foot long mural and 4 sculptures that I created for Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital in Nashville, TN. This is on the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of the new 11th floor.

Since “Space” was the theme, I created a painting about “Space Bunnies.” It was hard to paint this since I didn’t possess a stretch of wall that long in my house. So I attached the canvas to the outside of my house and painted in my yard. I needed the room to stand back so I could see what I was doing. It was hot and not an ideal painting situation but so worth it at the end of the day.

To install the mural, I had to use a product that would make the art removable and cleanable at the same time. My husband and friend Lisa helped me install this long piece of art directly to the wall. I varnished it (using all GOLDEN acrylic products for this whole process) and Vanderbilt covered it with plexiglass to help preserve it.  There are also some resin bunny sculptures I cast and painted and they are on the pedestals outside the elevator and one is jumping off a window ledge. These are to help draw your eye toward the art when you step off the 11th floor.

My hope is that the siblings and family of sick babies and the staff who treat them will have a moment of respite as they observe the space bunnies taking off from earth and playing in space. It’s pure whimsy and fun. My goal was to make the bunnies “human-like” but not necessarily exactly like us. They are different colors–red, yellow, blue and green. Some of the bunnies are in wheelchairs or on crutches, some are young and old–it’s a mixture.

Thank you to Vanderbilt for giving me the opportunity as an artist to play and create in a way that different for me. I loved making this art for them!

“Space Bunnies” acrylic on canvas, 22′ long by 30″ high © 2020 Rachael McCampbell

FOR MORE PICTURES OF THE ART AND THE PROCESS MAKING IT, CLICK BELOW:

Rachael McCampbell painting “Space Bunnies” on the outside wall of her home in Leiper’s Fork, TN © 2020 Rachael McCampbell

Rachael McCampbell finishing final touches of “Space Bunnies” inside. © 2020 Rachael McCampbell

The mural was too long to hang in Rachael’s studio, so we applied it to the side of our country home so I could stand back and look at the art and paint it. It got very hot in the summer and fall but it go done. The plastic protected the art throughout the process. © 2020 by Rachael McCampbell

Rachael McCampbell painting the bunnies for the Vanderbilt “Space Bunnies” project. The Sculptures were placed on top of pedestals outside the elevator near the mural. © 2020 by Rachael McCampbell

Vanderbilt installer, Jerry, is putting the bunny on the windowsill of the 11th floor installation. © 2020 by Rachael McCampbell

Rachael and Jerry installing the Mama and baby bunny outside the elevator on the 11th floor of Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital. © 2020 by artist Rachael McCampbell

Mama and baby bunny sculpture by elevator on the 11th floor of Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital. Art by Rachael McCampbell © 2020

Another bunny by the elevator of Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital 11th floor–pointing at the mural. All art by Rachael McCampbell © 2020

View of Mama and baby bunny, leaping bunny and mural at Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital–11th floor. All art by Rachael McCampbell © 2020

Another view of “Space Bunnies” mural, Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital, 11th floor, NIC unit. All art by Rachael McCampbell © 2020