Piñata Time!
This project is one of my proudest moments during my time at Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City. It came after a trip to Mexico City with several members of the hospital, where we painted a mural in collaboration with a hospital we had recently formed a partnership with. Our CEO wanted to celebrate this new relationship by doing something special on the main campus, so I was asked to help refresh a space where employees and visitors would gather to eat.
I knew I wanted to honor Mexican culture, but I also wanted to be sensitive and avoid misrepresenting anyone or relying on stereotypes. Since this was at a children's hospital, I thought about the things in Mexican culture that children associate with joy and celebration. That’s when the idea of the piñata came to life.
The mural features kids making piñatas and releasing them as gifts over Mexico City, which then transitions into Kansas City in the background. It was created as a digital mural, with the sky carefully matched to the paint color of the upper mural to create a seamless blend. The clouds were hand-painted with latex and airbrushing, with the help of the in-house painting team.
The flat elements of the design were printed on PVC, custom cut, and taped up. The floating elements, which I designed digitally, were fabricated by Midtown Signs. They cut them out of high-density foam, layering them with a waffle pattern inside to make them lighter. I later visited their sign shop to spray paint the pieces to match the mural's look.
Once fabrication was complete, we worked with engineers to figure out how to install the pieces into the ceiling, and we took care of the rest.
Looking back, I’m so proud of how this project turned out. It was a true team effort, with so many people coming together to bring this vision to life. It was an honor to create something meaningful for the hospital while also celebrating a beautiful cultural connection.
A full finished photo of the area is also in the Works section under Open Spaces.
Sombart Lobby Children’s Mercy - Kansas City
Sombart Lobby Children’s Mercy - Kansas City
Sombart Lobby Children’s Mercy - Kansas City
Sombart Lobby Children’s Mercy - Kansas City
Sombart Lobby Children’s Mercy - Kansas City
Sombart Lobby Children’s Mercy - Kansas City