Parrott Creek Residential Campus
As part of their redevelopment effort, Parrott Creek collaborated with design leaders and academic institutions to reimagine their residential treatment center using Trauma-Informed Design. This approach centers on the needs, voices, and lived experiences of the youth. Ditroen worked alongside the core design team to create signage and wayfinding, as well as a program of site-specific art installations.
The art program at Parrott Creek is designed to amplify the built environment, creating a sense of welcome, connection, and safety while reflecting the values and perspectives of our audience. This program extends the principles of trauma-informed architectural design by celebrating identity, promoting healing, and fostering a connection to nature.
Upon arrival, participants are welcomed by an illustrated map highlighting key amenities and the local inhabitants and flora of the creek watershed. This empowers them to orient themselves and understand their new environment. It supports Parrott Creek's mission of helping youth identify their strengths and develop skills, showcased through elevated displays of their own artwork throughout the facility.
Tapping into our deep-rooted desire to connect with nature and living things, the campus signage brings the outdoors in through vibrant colors and organic patterns. Each building reflects its unique bioregion with a distinct color palette and pattern, weaving a narrative of place and making wayfinding intuitive and memorable. Created in partnership with local artists who continue engagement with the youth through workshops. The Gym and Pavilion serve as spaces for self-expression and play, with vibrant murals and affirmations.
Additionally, contemplation spaces weave throughout the campus, encouraging connection with nature and introspection. Designed to inspire gratitude and personal reflection, these areas use boulders from the construction site, offering an open-ended narrative for each individual's interpretation during their stay. Primary to the campus exterior experience is a land acknowledgment that affirms the ongoing stewardship of the land by local tribal communities. Calling attention to the ongoing cultural ecology program present on the campus.
