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Background: Institutional environments such as hospitals and prisons are often characterized by sterile, isolating, or oppressive atmospheres that can affect mental health, communication, and social relations. Artistic interventions in these settings can transform them into spaces of care, empathy, and human connection.

Objectives: This research explores how site-specific and participatory mural practices contribute to the rehumanization of institutional spaces. It aims to establish an evidence-based framework for integrating art into systems of care and rehabilitation, bridging medical, social, and artistic disciplines.

Methods: The study synthesizes findings from six prison-based research projects (Exemplary Penitentiary, Revitalization of Prison Space through Art, Horizon of Freedom, Freedom of Creation, Colors of Reality, and Equality of Creativity) and several hospital-based interventions, including the doctoral research Rehumanization and Reaestheticization of Hospital Space by Dr. Šefcic. Qualitative methodologies—such as participatory observation, semi-structured interviews, and post-project evaluations—were employed to analyze psychosocial impact, spatial perception, and well-being outcomes.

Results: Findings demonstrate that murals, when co-created with communities, serve as “positive distraction therapy,” fostering a sense of dignity, belonging, and dialogue. In both hospitals and prisons, art emerges as a catalyst for empathy and social repair.

Conclusion: By redefining care as an inclusive, aesthetic, and relational process, these projects illustrate how artistic practice can inform institutional design and policy. Murals become systems of care—bridging art, medicine, and rehabilitation while advancing WHO and EU Culture & Health objectives.