Local Artist's Work on Display at Winchester Hospital

There probably aren't too many kids out there who actually enjoy having blood drawn. Let's face it, the list of things kids would rather do than go to the blood lab is most likely pretty long. But thanks to local artist Becky Heinold, the sight of a needle will be a little less ominous for visitors to the phlebotomy lab at Winchester Hospital.

Heinold spent three days transforming the pediatric lab into a deep-sea submarine, complete with giant portholes looking out into a vast ocean filled with whales, sharks, stingrays, clownfish and even a school of yellow seahorses. 

"It feels great," said Heinold. "One of the reasons to do it was to help them when they take blood from kids that are probably screaming their brains off, this is probably a great distraction so it felt good to do this. They told me the adults request that room when they take blood, not just the kids."

"The thought was to make it more pleasurable," said phlebotomist Patricia Veinot. "You can distract them. We're always trying to distract from what's about to take place to lessen their anxiety. It's great." 

Aside from the eclectic mix of marine life floating outside the phlebotomy submarine, the left wall features a life-sized deep-sea diver asking onlookers to find the hidden starfish scattered throughout the room (We won't ruin the surprise). 

"They love it," said Veinot. "When they first walk in, they're like, 'Whoa!' It's so unique that all ages are enjoying it. It's not just the young children. They just keep looking around. It's a nice conversational piece."

While the skill and attention to detail in the mural is striking (there are 160 bolts sealing the portholes), what's even more impressive is that this was Heinold's first mural. 

"I thought it would be a great opportunity for me," said Heinold. "It was a fun project for me. I'd never done a mural before so that was my first one. I didn't know what kind of paints to use or what kind of brushes. It was all new to me."

In her short career as an artist, Heinold is used to quick, and sometimes unexpected success. A recent graduate of ITT Tech in Woburn, Heinold never took a formal art class until college. 

Prior to ITT Tech, Heinold attended Mount Ida College where she took her first color theory class. After that, Heinold decided to try her hand at portrait painting in 2007. Since then she has painted dozens people and animal portraits and has had her work sold at last fall's Winchester Hospital's gala auction and has a portrait hanging at Imari, an Asian fusion restaurant in Winchester. 

"I took some basic color theory classes and then on the side I figured I'd just try a portrait," said Heinold. "The first one was of me and my boyfriend. I had a little help from a couple of teachers. It turned out great and I just continued. I never took any art classes before college It kind of just came to me." 

With her first mural a success, Heinold can add another skill to her growing repertoire of artistic prowess. And even though there aren't any plans yet for another mural, Heinold said she's looking forward to more opportunities to help out at the hospital. 

"There's nothing scheduled yet," said Heinold. "But if they need another room painted I'll be glad to do it." 

To see some more examples of Heinold's work, go to www.portraits-by-becky.com.