The Medical Mosaic

If you enter Toronto General from the Elizabeth street entrance, make a right turn down the hallway toward MaRS, you will see something unexpected and captivating. Along the east wall of the hallway is a mosaic that was beautifully crafted using colorful medical supplies.

The creative and resourceful nurse, Tilda Shalof, produced this wonderful work of art with materials that would have otherwise been wasted. She collected 1000s of different coloured lids, caps and attachments from medical materials over the past 28 years working at Toronto General. Tilda worked in the intensive care unit as a registered nurse. When she moved on to a new position, she was inspired to use the materials she collected and create something to honors the years she invested in the ICU and all the patients she worked with.

With the help of her good friend and artist, Vanessa Herman, and Bradley Matson, they turned these pieces, which nobody would have expected to be reusable, into a beautiful mosaic of colours that brighten up the hospital hallway. “Mindfulness is the key message in the mural,” Tilda explains. “You may not see value in these small pieces alone, however when you put many of them together with a helpful imagination you can turn these little fragments into something of value.”

Tilda is not only a nurse at Toronto General, but she is also actively involved with conference keynote presentations and public speaking. In addition, Tilda is the author of six novels. If you are also looking for a good read, you can check out Tilda’s books by clicking here!

Tilda has many ideas for future art projects at TGH, however she has a shortage of supplies. We can help by collecting lids, caps and other attachments from medical materials for her. If you are interested in collecting these materials for Tilda, you can contact her at Tilda@NurseTilda.com. You will also be making your workspace greener by diverting waste from the landfill!

If you are interested in viewing Tilda’s art, I invite you to spend your lunch break appreciating this beautiful mosaic with your own eyes! Conveniently, the food court is around the corner.

For more Trash-to-Masterpiece stories, see Don’t throw that out … it’s art!.