Skyspace Sustenance 2024: Transforming Patient Care with Light and Art

Zumtobel has completed Skyspace Sustenance 2024 inside University Children’s Hospital Zurich. Combining emotional depth with technical mastery, this dome‑shaped installation designed by American light artist James Turrelltransforms light into art and a source of healing. Described as a small refuge of light and silence, the work has received widespread praise.

Occupying the heart of the hospital, Skyspace Sustenance 2024 is the most recent collaboration between Zumtobel and the artist in a long series of similar projects. The work provides a place of refuge for people dealing with significant life challenges – an upcoming procedure or a confronting diagnosis, for example. Spending time in the two-level dome allows them to pause and contemplate the light and sky. A welcome distraction, it offers an opportunity for calm and reflection. The installation has a movable roof with adjustable lighting to create a truly immersive experience.

This innovative space brings technology and science together. Made from 3D‑milled blocks and tensioned steel bands, the structure is seismic‑ and fire‑resistant. A controllable system of 433 LEDs produces light that harmonizes with the sky, while the retractable roof ensures safety near a helipad. The result is a quietly transcendent experience that supports healing through light, space, and calm. The hospital itself was built around the philosophy of healing architecture, with all rooms designed to support recovery through art, exacting lighting design, and natural materials. “This work of art is the most elaborate and best we have ever created,” says Zumtobel project manager Jürgen Häcker.

For more information: www.zumtobel.it