Art Heals: A Night of Creativity for a Great Cause

Last week, Herman Miller Boston and Creative Office Pavilion sponsored the 2019 Magis Puppy Design Challenge at the Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA), where guests were able to vote on Magis Puppies that had been designed and re-imagined by design firms throughout the Boston area. Payette and sixteen other A&D firms in our community created a “Pup” using the Magis Puppy as the canvas. Our Interiors team worked for several weeks to design a Pirate Pup.

About the Challenge
The Magis Puppy Design Challenge is an event that is hosted in cities across the country, meant to inspire the imagination, to display what can be built from a blank canvas, and to bring together individuals from diverse firms to challenge them to create something truly special for Boston Children’s Hospital. While the firms were working on designing their Magis Pups, people had the opportunity to give donations leading up to and during the event. All proceeds will go to the Hospital’s arts program.

This summer, the Hospital will have the winning designs on display. Additionally, all other Pup submissions will be displayed on a rotating schedule on the Children’s Hospital roof garden. Currently, our pup is located in the Interiors Area of our office.

How did the journey of a pirate inspire us?
Design is a voyage. To a pirate, there are no boundaries; only new territories to discover. As designers, we uncover new ideas, concepts, and platforms every day. We find inspiration, similarly to a pirate’s voyage, through the limitless opportunities that design has to offer.

On June 24, 2019, the competing firms convened with a jury during an event to determine the winning designs. There, we witnessed the immense talent and creativity of our fellow design peers. Every firm put forth their best work, and it was evident that considerable time and thought had gone into developing a design that would stand out uniquely. In short, the competition was fierce! In the end, NBBJ won first place. They designed their dog using Scandinavian reindeer moss produced by Nordgröna.

We recently learned about this type of moss, which is grown in Sweden and colored with a salt-water dye; the moss is fire-resistant and maintenance-free, holds acoustic properties and can be left alone after installation for more than ten years. We have recently added this moss to our materials library. It is both aesthetically fun and sustainable product. Who knew that our most recent addition would become our fiercest competition!

In the end, why does this all matter?
Being sick is difficult for anyone, especially for a child who may not always understand what’s happening to them. It takes a toll on your emotional and physical state, not only for the sick child but for the parents, who must watch as their child experiences pain, various treatments and often uncomfortable side effects.

While our submission did not win, we still feel it was a huge success and we look forward to supporting this great cause next year. When there are limited rules, innovative, creative possibilities are endless. We hope the competition is ready!

The donation page is still active, so we hope you will consider making a contribution to support the work of the Boston Children’s Hospital Art’s Program, which offers engaging and uplifting arts experiences for patients and families throughout their hospital experience.