California Hospital of Emotions

A visitor stands in the Gratitude Room, which is covered with handwritten notes, during the "Hospital of Emotions" exhibition inside a former hospital building in Los Angeles, Wednesday, July 22, 2026.

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How artists transformed a former hospital in Los Angeles to examine human emotions

How artists transformed a former hospital in Los Angeles to examine human emotions

The former hospital at St. Vincent Behavioral Health Campus in Los Angeles was built in 1856 and has been closed since 2020. A group of 70 artists has since taken over exam rooms, nurses' stations and the entire lobby in an immersive art experience called “Hospital of Emotions.” The installation rooms focus on different dimensions of being human and visitors check in as if they are patients. In the “Resilience Department,” there's an interactive audio piece in which the artist recounts having an epileptic seizure. In another room a virtual character based off a real person who is a veteran talks about experiencing PTSD and reads a suicide note. The show will be open through the end of September.