On May 1, 2016, Qatar Foundation unveiled its state-of-the-art hospital, Sidra, featuring the largest array of Sky Factory Luminous SkyCeilings, the only research-verified virtual skylights in the world.

Sidra Medical & Research Center represents the vision of Her Highness Shiekha Moza bint Nasser, who considers it Qatar's most ambitious project to date. The sleek complex was designed to provide world-class healthcare to the people of the Gulf Region.

"From the beauty of its architecture and healing gardens to its cutting-edge technology and luxurious interior, Sidra will embody Education City's reputation for quality and excellence," says Her Highness Shiekha Moza bint Nasser, Chair of Sidra Medical and Research Center.

Qatar Foundation selected Sky Factory to outfit 213 of the 380 patient rooms with its award-winning illusions of nature, allowing occupants to experience a perceived organic connection to open skies.

A visual connection to nature is the most sought-after biophilic design feature in any architecture, particularly in healthcare environments. Facility planners at Sidra sought to secure this restorativte attribute for patient rooms facing the interior of the building.

Sidra was designed by renowned architect Cesar Pelli, best known for the Petronas Twin Towers in Malaysia. Sidra is part of Education City and as an entity of the Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development—the complex is part of a dynamic research and education environment.

Education City includes leading educational institutions such as Georgetown University, Carnegie Mellon University and HEC Paris, as well as recently established national research centers like Qatar Biomedical Research Institute and Qatar Environmental and Energy Resource Institute.

Committed to staff well-being, the St. David's Foundation in Austin, TX, chose Sky Factory to design a simulated atrium for its Conference and Innovation Center. The installation features the award-winning Revelation SkyCeiling.

The 20-foot by 18-foot virtual skylight overlooks a large interior stairway, framing the upward view from the lower floors. This architectural illusion of nature creates a magnificent view of open sky using a color temperature that mimics daylight.

The Revelation SkyCeiling serves as a biophilic design element that provides visual and spatial relief to isolated conference rooms. Staff working long hours now benefit from an installation that facilitates cognitive restoration in enclosed interiors.

St. David's Foundation is the charitable branch of St. David's Healthcare, the fourth-largest private employer in Austin, TX, with more than 8,100 employees. St. David's healthcare is one of the Top 15 health systems in the U.S. It has been recognized at the state and national level for its outstanding commitment to high-quality care.

In 2014, St. David's Healthcare was recognized with a Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award—the nation's highest presidential honor for performance excellence through innovation, improvement, and visionary leadership. It has also been recognized with the Texas Award for Performance Excellence, the highest honor bestowed by the State of Texas based on world-class quality measures.

In 2016, the Foundation plans to invest more than $75 million to provide thousands of low-income residents with access to a full range of health services. Through its unique partnership, St. David's Foundation reinvests proceeds from St. David's Healthcare to improve the lives of the community's most vulnerable residents through signature programs and collaborations with over 60 nonprofit partners.

Imagine. What’s the therapeutic effect of an open sky in an intensive care unit?

Until now, nobody knew.

The answer was provided courtesy of Sky Factory, the only provider of research-verified virtual skylights in the world, who teamed up with Southern Lyon Hospital.

Together, designers set out to transform the patient experience in the hospital's isolated resuscitation rooms. The challenge was to work with a standard ICU room design, which tends to generate anxiety in patients due to the enclosed nature of the space.

The solution? Create the illusion of perceived open space.

An unencumbered vista to nature—even an illusory view of the sky—ameliorates the disorientation felt by patients emerging from unconsciousness. The familiar element of a blue sky, white clouds, and a trace of foliage delivers an organic connection to nature that our physiology intuitively finds reassuring.

By using a combination of techniques, fine artists at the Sky Factory's simulate a line of sight to open blue skies. Employing high resolution images, calibrated color temperature and light intensity—plus patented architectural reveals—designers give rise to a portal that is not only visually alluring, but spatially accurate.

These illusions of nature deliver a more powerful therapeutic benefit than representational imagery. Simulating an open view to nature that transcends its symbolic reference frame allows observers to experience an automatic "Relaxation Response"—the same reaction that natural environments evoke.

"The [Personal Revelation SkyCeiling] provides a touch of daylight," says Magali and Amelie, shift nurses at the hospital's ICU. "The installation provides a welcome point of reference for patients about their proximity to a natural exterior." Patients that just endured a trying episode can focus their attention on a view reminiscent of better days outdoors, marveling at the sky.

The project was funded by the Association of Life Aplastic Anemia and Leukemia (AVAL).

The two resuscitation rooms outfitted with these 2' x 6' simulated portals to open skies come on the heels of a well-regarded, peer-reviewed study by Texas Tech University entitled The Impact of Nature Stimuli in Patient Outcomes.

The single-blind, 8-month study found that Sky Factory’s Luminous SkyCeilings made a significant difference in patient room environments by reducing Acute Stress by more than 53% and Anxiety by more than 34%.