air sketchbook

Maggie’s Falmouth

Brief.........................................................................................................................................................1Purpose of Maggies Centres....................................................................................................................7Requirements..........................................................................................................................................8Overall Center.........................................................................................................................................9Understanding the project.....................................................................................................................10Who is Maggie.......................................................................................................................................11Maggie’s: A brief history........................................................................................................................14Collecting Information..........................................................................................................................15Case Study - Existing Maggie’s Centres...........................................................................................16-30Case Study - Health Clinics.............................................................................................................32-35Case Study - Rolex Learning Centre....................................................................................................36Case Study - Berlin Science Centre.......................................................................................................37Case Study - Retirement Home............................................................................................................38Case Study - Health Care for the Duke Integrative Medicine.............................................................39Case Study - Frank Gehry’s Brain Centre......................................................................................40-41Can Architecture Heal?...................................................................................................................42-43‘Good Architecture Can Heal’ (Article)................................................................................................44Angie MacDonald - Summery of Notes from Lecture.........................................................................45The User...........................................................................................................................................46-47Understanding the Existing Building..............................................................................................48-49The Existing building in Plan...............................................................................................................50The Existing building in Section...........................................................................................................51The Architects drawings...................................................................................................................52-54Reading the Building.............................................................................................................................55Schedule of Accommodation............................................................................................................56-57The User and Their Requirements...................................................................................................58-60Architectural Moodboard......................................................................................................................61Applying Concept Strategies..................................................................................................................62Concept Strategies............................................................................................................................63-65Concept Strategies (tested in scale)..................................................................................................66-67‘Innovations in Hospital Architecture’ (Article)..............................................................................68-69Joshua Price-Ramuson: Seattle Library..........................................................................................70-71Ergonomics......................................................................................................................................72-73Disabled Access......................................................................................................................................74Fire Exits...............................................................................................................................................75Declaring, Defining and Dividing Space.........................................................................................76-77

“Maggie’s asks a lot of its buildings and hence of its architects. We expect the physical space to do a significant amount of our work for us. A Maggie’s Centre sets the hence for people going through a traumatic experience. They are places where people draw on strengths they may not have realized they had in order to maximize their own capacity to cope. We need buildings where people can read themselves differently, as individuals in unusually difficult circumstances, not as patients, let alone cancer victims. We identify ourselves in different ways and one of them is by our environment. This is why we choose architects who we think will rise to the challenge of making spaces for us which help this transition and also do apparently contradictory things. We need our buildings to feel safe and welcoming. They need to be small, and domestic in scale. On the other hand these little buildings should not pat you on the head, patronize you by being too cosy. They should rise to the occasion of one of the most difficult challenges any of us are likely to have to face. At the very least they should raise your spirits. We need our buildings to recognise that the world of the hospital and a cancer diagnoses turn your personal world upside down, and that in deciding to walk through the door of a Maggie’s Centre people are saying to themselves and not to us: ‘I am adjusting to a difficult and unknown situation that I am finding hard to cope with on my own.’ To a greater or lesser degree, by walking into a Maggie’s Centre people are asking how they can put their lives back together again. They are hoping for transformation. Giving them a place to turn to which is surprising and thought provoking - and even inspiring - will give them the setting and the benchmark of qualities they will need in themselves. Knowing there is a place to turn to which is special in itself makes you feel valued. So we want architects to think about the person who walks in the door. We also want the buildings to be interesting enough that they are a good reason to come in rather than just ‘I’m not coping’. The first clinical psychologist who worked for Maggie’s, Glyn Jarvis, says that working from a Maggie’s Centre means that he can start a quantum leap ahead of talking to the same person in a hospital context because people have actively chosen to come in. Maggie’s Centres and the way they are designed increase the sense of connectedness between people: they are not all one in this situation and people can find ways of moving forward from the crisis of diagnosis. The architects should be thinking about the human relationships and connections, and doing the job of helping that happen. What we are also looking for in our architects is an attitude. We want people to deliver the brief but without preconceived ideas. We don’t want to say to them: “This is the way it is done.” We want them to open our eyes as well. Maggie’s was lucky in our architect for the first Maggie’s. Richard Murphy in Edinburgh, who showed us how much a building can achieve by creating the right atmosphere. We are also lucky to be able to draw on the close friendships of Maggie and Charles Jencks with some of the most imaginative architects working in the world today, and who have reinforced for us how much a good building can do. We hadn’t realised, until it happened, how powerful a tool it would be that each community feels so proud of its Maggie’s. This works on multiple levels. Critical to the success of Maggie’s is a strong feeling of ownership by the local community. It makes people feel: ‘This is wonderful and it belongs to me, and to other people in the same boat as me.’ They want to come in. It provides one positive thing to look forward to in their trek to the hospital. It is critical, also, because people talk about their Maggie’s. The centres do our ‘marketing’ for us. Crucially, these special, unique buildings help us to raise the money we need to build them in the first place, and the to keep them running. Our buildings are special and we choose special architects, not for some luxury

add-on value, but because they are a critical component of what we do.”

The Breif

“Above all, what matters is not to lose to joy of living in the fear of dying”

Maggie Keswick(1941 - 1995)

* To provide non-residential support and information facilities for people with cancer, and for their families and friends

* The build will offer its users a calm friendly space where each individual can decide what strategy they want to adopt to support their medical treatment and their overall welfare.

* They will be able, if they so wish, to have a private conversation with the programme director or the clinical psychologist about their situation and needs.

* On offer within the building will be a free programme, which will include group support, family and friends support, relaxation sessions, information access and benefits advice.

* People may choose to do any of this programme or none of it. Some will want to use the centre to have a cup of tea and a quiet pause. Others will be helped by offering volunteer services themselves,

such as gardening. And others, again, will want to join support groups and actively participate.

* We do not want to suggest there are better or worse ways of dealing with cancer. Any way that helps anybody going through cancer to feel better is fine, with the important proviso that any service offered in the building will be approved by the Professional Advisory Board and will be complementary and

not alternative to orthodox medical treatment.

* Approximate size of a Maggie’s Centre is 280m2

Purpose of Maggie’s Centres

* Entrance: obvious, welcoming, not intimidating. Small coat-handing/brolly space. A welcome/setting/information/library area, from which the layout of the rest of the building should be clear. There should be as much light as possible. There should be views out to grass/trees/sky. You should be able to see where the kitchen area is, equally the sitting room and fireplaces area (heart & home).

Maggie suggested a fish tank.

* Office space for a) centre head and b) fund-raiser/deputy. This should be easily accessible from the welcome area. . There should be storage space for stationary/pamphlets/bumph accessible to the office space. Space should be allocated for a photocopier, printer, server and other office machinery. Each workstation needs a telephone, computer point and light, shelf and draw space. As well as the main ones there should be 5 other workstations, which can be quite small. . Somewhere for staff to

hang their coats.

* A video-viewing and computer-link information area or bay for the use of 4 people

* A kitchen area, with room for a large table to seat 12. A central ‘island’ on which cooking demonstrations could take place would be helpful.

* A large room for relaxation groups/lectures/meetings. A space sufficient to take a maximum of 14 people lying down. Storage space for relaxation/folding chairs.

* Two smaller sitting/counselling rooms for 12 people with a fireplace or stove.

* Two (or one if the large room can be subdivided) small rooms for counselling or therapy, preferably with big windows looking out to grass/trees/sky. They should have a bit of character and perhaps they could have sliding doors that can be left open and be inviting when not in use. They should be

soundproof. One should be able to take a treatment bed, preferably facing a window.

* Lavatories (probably 3) with washbasins and mirrors, and at least one that is big enough to take a chair and a bookshelf. They should not be all in a row with gaps under the doors. Private enough

to have a cry.

*A very small quiet space to have a rest/lie down.

* Outside: garden areas and 10 parking spaces

Requirements for Maggie’s

We want to make spaces that make people feel better rather than worse (most hospitals). As much light as possible. Important to be able to look out - and even step out - from as many ‘rooms’ as possible into something like a garden, a courtyard, or ‘nature’. At the same time, the sitting/counselling rooms (8) and (9) should have privacy, i.e. if they do have doors to the outside ‘rooms’, passers-by shouldn’t intrude. The interior spaces shouldn’t be so open to the outside that people feel naked and unprotected. They should feel safe enough inside that they can look out and even go out if they wanted... this describes a state of mind, doesn’t it? We want to have the minimum possible ‘administration office’ type atmosphere. No doors with ‘fundraiser’ on the outside. We want the ethos and scale to be domestic. We need to think of all the aspects of hospitals layouts which reinforce ‘institution’ - corridors, signs, secrets, confusion - and then unpick them. As a user of the building, we want you to approach the building, and see an obvious and enticing door. When you come in, we want the first impression to be welcoming. People may come to ‘have a look’ the first time. We want centre users to feel encouraged and not daunted: they are likey to be feeling frightened and very low anyway. We want them to have an idea of what is going on in the whole building when they come in. We want them to feel they have coem into a family community in which they can participate, amek their own tea or coffee, use a computer, sit down and borrow a book, even find somewhere they might want to have a sleep for half an hour. Things shouldn’t be too perfect. The rooms for counsilling should be compleatly private when they are in use, but it would be no bad thing if they chould be opened up when they are not. We want users to know they can say things in confidence and be quiet, but also be concious taht things are going on around them taht they might be interested in. We want the building to feel like a home people wouldn’t have quite dared build themsleves, and which means them feel there is at least one positive aspect about their visit to the hospital which they may look forward to. We want the building to make you feel, as Maggie made you feel when you had spent time with her, more buoyant, more optimistic, that life was more ‘interesting’ when you left the room

than when you walked in.

Ambitious but possible?

Overall Concept;

Understanding the project:

Maggie Centres need to be welcoming, calming, inspirational, innovative and creative in its design without being too imposing and intimidating to its users ,the space needs to be able to treat and ‘counselled’ in an informal and non-clinical environment. There needs to be domestic areas and treatment areas which feel welcoming not only to patients but also their family and friends. Light is very important to the Maggie Centre’s as is the relationship between ‘inside’ and ‘outside’ areas and the importance of communal and social spaces and private rooms for treatment and therapies. After researching the existing Maggie Centres, there is a common sense of the buildings metaphorical journey of recovery leading from the domestic, comfortable interior to the slightly less sheltered gardens which beckon the patients to the quiet and private outside areas, each transition from inside to outside seems to encourage a larger, metaphorical movement from treatment and recovery to

Maggie Keswick and her husband were lucky to have close friendships with architects who were and still are at the cutting edge of their trade. The foundation ask for designers to think outside the box, to excite them and the users in a comfortable manner. The users will not only be cancer patients but

also their friends and family, doctors, psychologists, physiologists, chefs, counsellors etc.

Understanding the client:

Maggie was born in 1941. Her background was not only privileged, it was exotic – divided between Scotland, Shanghai and Hong Kong. Her father was a remarkable tycoon who, during the communist takeover of Shanghai, unlike most Europeans stayed on to help feed a starving population. He was rich but also philanthropic. And he spoke fluent Chinese. Maggie was an adored only child and might easily have been spoilt. But she never was. She was raised a Catholic (becoming, according to her husband, more of a Buddhist/Catholic later in life). She was educated at Woldingham in Surrey and at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford, where she read English. Anne Chisholm met her at university and remembers her as "light on her feet, buoyant, vividly alive. While the rest of us were creeping around in various stages of lumpishness, here was this dazzling creature – much more stylish than any of us, she could lift a room." Maggie would cook Chinese delicacies in the pantry at her college. The oriental drifted into her dress sense too. She would train a Chinese scarf across her chin, securing it with a knot (in the rum fashion of the time). She was clever, funny, a good listener and a performer (acting in student productions with Esther Rantzen as co-thespian). She sang well and could quote yards of poetry by heart. She was an attractive mixture: an empathetic extrovert. In 1965, after leaving university, she and a friend launched a boutique, Annacat (named after their dogs). The look, according to Chisholm, was “daughter of Mary Quant”. Jencks remembers it more as “Victorian freestyle” (like some outlandish swimming stroke). At that time, Maggie became “a celebrity with the smallest of cs” (in a photograph by David Bailey, she looks the embodiment of the Swinging 60s). But fashion would prove too insubstantial for her. In 1970, she joined the Architectural Association and met Charles Jencks, an American architectural writer and landscape architect teaching there. He remembers how vivacious she was. But he adds: “The thing about Maggie is that she was vulnerable.” She was insecure about her looks, did not believe in the beauty others saw in her. She’d spend ages trying to get her clothes right – and be late for dinner. She tended to be late generally. But people warmed to her because as her husband says: ‘More than almost anyone I’ve met, she had a liking for

people and they felt that in her.”

Who is Maggie?

“When Maggie Keswick Jencks was 47 she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Five years later she started to have severe back pain and, after two misdiagnoses, went to her local GP’s surgery in Dumfries where she was told the cancer had spread to her bones, liver and bone marrow. She and her husband were told to see a visiting Edinburgh consultant. They waited in an “awful interior space” with neon lighting and then the nurse told them to come in. They asked: “How long have we got?” To which the doctor said: “Do you really want to know?” “Yes we really want to know.” “Two to three months.” “Oh…!” And then the nurse explained. “I’m very sorry, dear, but we’ll have to move you out into the corridor, we have so many people waiting.” They sat in a “windowless corridor trying to deal with this business, having two to three months to live. And as we sat there, various nurses who I knew came up and said, very cheerfully, ‘Hello dear, how are you?’ ‘Well,’ managing a laugh, ‘I’m fine!’” This was the story that became Maggie’s spur – the NHS corridor that would lead to her big idea. There might be no cure for Maggie’s cancer but here was something that could be changed. Why shunt people with cancer into miserable surroundings? Didn’t people need respect, time and space? With the support of her young nurse, Laura Lee, Maggie would devote the rest of her life to planning a cancer caring centre. She had a feel for what was needed and the drive and money, as daughter of the director of the Scottish trading company Jardine Matheson, to do something about it. She understood the need to feel in charge (not a helpless passenger in a hospital production line). She realised people might want to find out more about their treatment options. And she knew a beautiful space was needed in which to digest even the worst of news. She envisaged a room with a view – and a library. And she argued for an “old-fashioned ladies’ room – not a partitioned toilet in a row”. This would supply “privacy for crying, water for washing the face, and a mirror for getting ready to deal with the world outside again”. She knew that, in a crisis, everything counts, even – or especially – the

little things.

“Little” does not describe what has happened in the 15 years since her death: her idea has taken off. Today, there are 15 centres – seven up and running, seven in the pipeline (opening before 2012) and one online (a V&A display this month celebrates the achievement). Yet Maggie’s centres are anything but pushy: they are only ever built at the invitation of NHS Trusts and, usually, in the grounds of hospitals with oncology departments. Unsurprisingly, hospitals recognise they need them and architects are queuing up to build them. And the existing centres have tremendous architectural prestige (Frank Gehry, Zaha Hadid, Page and Park have all designed one). But they are about far more than architecture for architecture’s sake. Above all, they remind us that it is not frivolous to care about design. And this year the British Medical Association is also, at last, acknowledging architecture’s importance as an ingredient in recovery. It is calling on healthcare organisations to “prioritise design in future building projects” after a new report showed that “architectural environment can significantly affect patients’ recovery times.” We are – to some extent – what we se

The Guardian - February 2011

1996 The first Maggie's centre, designed by Richard Murphy, opens in Edinburgh, on the site where Maggie was diagnosed. Mike Dixon, a surgeon at the hospital said: "We have good doctors... but

Maggie's is the jewel in the crown of what we do here."

2002 Maggie's Glasgow opens in a red brick gatehouse beside Kelvingrove Park, redesigned and converted by Page\Park. David Page brought Maggie's ethos of informality and flow to life with

rooms that "break through at the back, out towards the landscape and park".

2003 Bob Geldof opens the Dundee centre, designed by Frank Gehry. A tall cylindrical space with an observation point at the top is surrounded by a series of curving planes.

2005 Maggie's Highlands opens, designed by Page\Park with Charles Jencks. The spiralling building, which Jencks describes as a "small city", is crowned by bright green copper.

2006 Gordon Brown opens Maggie's Fife, designed by Zaha Hadid. Its dark surface, with silicon carbide grit, creates a glistening, ethereal appearance.

2008 The London centre, designed by Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners, opens. "I am delighted Maggie's London is opening..." says Rogers. "There is a long history linking well-designed buildings

and space with healing."

2010 Of his new centre in Cheltenham, Sir Richard MacCormac says: "A few minutes away from the hospital but psychologically nowhere near, it is very much its own place."

In the pipeline: Fundraising is under way to realise more centres in the UK and abroad – Maggie's Oxford, designed by Wilkinson Eyre, will nestle in the woods next to the Oxford Radcliffe hospitals. The structure weaves together a number of layers, and includes terraces and outside spaces among the trees. Maggie's South West Wales, designed by Kisho Kurokawa. Kurokawa died in 2007, so architects Thore Garbers and Wendy James took on the project. Maggie's Nottingham, designed by Piers Gough, is another "treehouse" but less a part of the woodland landscape. Maggie's Lanarkshire, designed by Neil Gillespie. Plans are under way for a Maggie's North East in Newcastle and a

Maggie's Aberdeen.

Outside the UK: Maggie's Hong Kong, designed by Frank Gehry, and Maggie's Barcelona. A Catalan team based in Barcelona has approached Maggie's UK to create a similar network of centres across

Spain.

Maggie’s History: A Breif History

To ensure the design is as far from a hospital-style environment yet still practical in terms of treatments and counselling services I have looked at some examples of ‘innovative’ medical centres and clinics, by innovative I mean, not the average, uninspiring hospital settings of long corridors coated head to toe in grey and white plastic tiles, title plaques nailed to every door, the dull humming of air conditioning systems and the clinical scent of hand sanitiser. Although the buildings are seeking to escape the ‘normal’ hospital/clinic, they still all seem to be rather predictable. Some use different material finishes or bold colour schemes but that’s almost as far as it goes. They are all still

recognisable as medical centres.

The existing Maggie’s Centre’s are all such creative and inspirational buildings to see even from a photograph let alone in person - I truly believe that the environment we work and live in can generate unique emotions which only great architecture and interiors are able to make. Maggie’s foundation has propelled itself further than any other of its sort because of its importance of architecture. They do not use architecture as statement of power for them or the architect nor an elaborate, impractical experiment but for being hugely thought-though and taking the user into constant consideration. At a glance some of the buildings could seem a little whacky but they all seem to share the same justification - they make the user feel inspired therefore promoting a more optimistic state of mind.

Collecting Information:

Edinburgh

Maggie’s Edinburgh is a converted stable block that is located behind ward one, the chemotherapy suite of the Western General Hospital. Up until 1995 it was used as a store by the hospital. It was during her own treatment that Maggie Keswick Jencks spotted the building as an ideal location for

a cancer information and support centre.

Richard Murphy, the Edinburgh based architect known for his creative use of space and light was appointed to convert the building. It originally had a kitchen, a small sitting room, a library, a relaxation room and a small office. The purpose of the garden is to extend the feeling of the Centre to the grounds outside. It was designed by Emma Keswick and in the summer months becomes an extension of the kitchen where people sit out and meet others or take a few quiet moments as they

look out onto water features and a sculpture by George Rickey.

Existing Maggie Centres

Richard Murphy(Speaking about his design)

“The exterior red sandstone walls and blue/ grey slate roofs of the L- shaped lodge towards the hospital side, including the main facade towards Dumbarton Road (which extends to form an arched gate to the University) were retained and restored as the public face and entrance. The less- visible and relatively poorer- condition University side was demolished to create a narrow site for a new extension addressing the park. Interlocking with the ‘older’ part of the building the new extension is an L- shape plan also but the external materials are differentiated using red brick walls and a lead roof. The interior of the central Tower, which originally contained a narrow winding stair, was completely opened up and relined in white- painted plaster with a rooflight formed at the top in order to funnel light down into the heart of the building, in particular just inside the entrance. The tower acts as a fulcrum of the organisation of the spiralling plan and levels with a new slate stair now wrapped round the outside of the exposed stonework. Although the original rooflines have been retained, the volume of the building has been maximised by the use of new steel portal frames. The ground floor is split in level, partly raised by half a storey to obtain both privacy and an enhanced outlook through a tall window to the park. Overlooking the sitting room and within earshot of the entrance, the staff workstations are located on an open oak-slatted gallery. Although previously dark and compartmentalised, light now enters the building from a multitude of directions through old and new windows. The spaces are capable of being opened as one or closed over with fine oak sliding or folding doors according to requirements. Outward views of the River Kelvin valley, the Art Gallery and the University tower are framed through large timber screens. Following the ethos of the brief, the indoor spaces strongly relate to outdoor spaces, for example a cabin- like counselling room opens onto a small patio planted with bamboo; the staircase landing gives access to a roof terrace tucked behind the front facade parapet. The Relaxation Room leads to a timber deck and, beyond, to an enclosed garden shaped by Charles Jencks where the spiral organisation of the building finds

an echo in the spiralling grass mounds and sculpture.”

David Page(Speaking about his design)

“We designed a single-level building in the form of a ring of interlocking rooms surrounding an internal landscaped courtyard. Seemingly haphazardly arranged, the building is actually a careful composition of spaces responding to the needs of a Maggie’s Centre and providing a refuge for those coping with cancer. The plan has been organised for the spaces to feel casual, almost carefree Instead of a series isolated rooms, the building is designed as a sequence of interconnected L-shaped figures in plan that create clearly distinguished areas – an arrangement that minimises the need for corridors and hallways and allows the rooms to flow. The plan has been organised for the spaces to feel casual, almost carefree, allowing one to feel at ease and at home, part of an empathetic community of people. At the same time the design also provides spaces for more personal moments – either in the intimate setting of the counselling rooms, or in smaller nooks and private spaces. Located in a natural setting, like a pavilion in the woods, the building is both introverted and extroverted: each space has a relationship either to the internal courtyard or to the surrounding woodland and greenery, while certain moments provide views. With a flat roof and floor levels that respond to the natural topography, the rooms vary in height, with the more intimate areas programmed for private uses such as counselling, and more open and spacious zones for communal use. More than any other

space, the internal courtyard provides a place of sanctuary and respite.”


Glasgow

The conversion design was by David Page of the Glasgow-based firm of architects Page \ Park. Keeping the original facade and as much of the interior as possible, David has created a welcoming contemporary house that can adapt to the needs of the people who visit it to use aspects of the programme. You enter through a covered doorway into the open-plan kitchen and library area. The library sits at the foot of what was once a stairwell and is flooded with shafts of warming sunlight created by an atrium that extends to the roof. Leading off from the kitchen is a small sitting area that can be closed off for one-to-one sessions. Up a few stairs takes you into a light and spacious lounge that has full-length windows on the far wall that look out onto a garden area. Going on through from the lounge takes you into the relaxation room that is used for group sessions and also looks out onto the garden. Where possible the rooms look out onto a garden that contains a sculpture called

‘DNA’ by Charles Jencks, the designer and husband of Maggie Keswick Jencks.

Highlands

Maggie’s Highlands is located at Raigmore Hospital, Inverness, officially opened on 7 June 2005 by Carol McGregor and Andy Kerr, Minister for Health. Since its opening, the Centre is visited on average by 30 people a day. Carol McGregor said at the opening: “These Centres are so beautiful and so well designed, you get this personal feeling as you walk in... There are lots of ideas I would like in my own house, such as the beautiful floors and the pink settees!” Laura Lee, Maggie’s Chief Executive hopes that the look of the building and landscape will help Highlanders visit the Centre. “I hope people will let curiosity get the better of them and come in through the door and find a space which the architect David Page has created. A man, who is a local user of the Centre, was telling me about how it had affected him. He said the building communicated to him the sense of being hugged. He added that he was not usually the sort of person who was drawn to that sort of

impressions about buildings.”


Karen Birch(Speaks about her experiance of the Highlands Maggie’s Centre)

“The first thing that you notice when you walk through the door is the warm, homely welcome. On the day I visited half a dozen ladies were sitting chatting around the kitchen table. I was greeted immediately with a friendly “hello” and offered a cup of tea – there was no receptionist, no security desk, no long corridors, no soulless signs to distant departments. In fact none of the things you would associate with a hospital are found in the Maggies Centre. And this is the point. The centre is a haven from the hospital environment. It is a home from home for the men and women who are at the various stage of cancer diagnosis, treatment and recovery. The relaxed environment, where everyone is made welcome, listened to and supported, allows cancer patients much needed respite from the emotional and physical trauma of cancer. Maggies Highlands has a full-time staff of 4; Carole herself, an information specialist, fundraiser and clinical psychologist. All of these professionals are smartly but casually dressed and mingle freely with the visitors. There is no barrier here – everyone talks freely to everyone else – each supports each other and this is the key to the

success of the centres here and nationwide.”

Frank Gehry(Speaking about his design)

“I hope the architecture won’t override the purpose of the building, but complement it and take it to a higher plane of comfort and beauty.”

Dundee

Maggie’s Dundee is located at Ninewells Hospital in Dundee. Maggie’s Dundee was designed by Frank Gehry and was opened in September 2003 by Sir Bob Geldof.

Maggie’s Dundee is located in front of Ward 32 at Ninewells Hospital. It commands stunning views down the Tay Estuary and across to North Fife. Unlike the conversions of Maggie’s Glasgow and Edinburgh this is the first new-build Maggie’s Centre, designed by Frank Gehry. Frank is a Los Angeles based architect, known widely for his design of the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao. He was

a close friend of Maggie’s and this project has been close to his heart.

The signature of Frank Gehry’s designs are their curving walls and unusual roofing. Frank began the process of the design by working with us to arrange the building blocks of the rooms in a suitable layout. Once this was agreed he then began designing the building around them. Frank makes

approximately sixty models for each of his buildings until he is happy with the design.


Fife

On Friday 3 November 2006 Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Member of Parliament for Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath, opened the doors of Maggie’s Fife to the public in his former capacity as Chancellor of the Exchequer. At his side were his wife and our Patron, Sarah Brown; Zaha Hadid, Pritzker Prize-winning architect who designed the centre; and Marilyn Livingstone, MSP for Kirkcaldy. The centre is Zaha Hadid’s first built work in the UK. Her design is a response to a brief set by Maggie’s to create a relaxed atmosphere where people can access additional support outside of the more clinical hospital environment. Maggie’s Fife has been built thanks to the generosity of the people of Fife who have raised over £500,000 to help build this dedicated cancer support centre. The Fife Free Press have spearheaded the campaign and the response from the public has been overwhelming. Maggie’s would like to take this opportunity to say a huge thank you to all who have supported the centre’s

work to date.Maggie’s Fife, which was designed by the award-winning architect Zaha Hadid, is situated in the

grounds of the Victoria Hospital in Fife.


Zaha Hadid(Speaks about her design)

‘The idea was that it should be hovering over the edge,’ she says as she consults her drawings. ‘The idea for the building is that it’s like a fold, like one whole piece that just wraps around. These shapes here are openings for light ... inside there are curved walls ... here you can have a consultation with a nurse, and here you can have a relaxation course, and here is the toilet, and this is the library area, and here is the main kitchen area with this big table where you can have tea and just chat to

whoever else is there.”

“Every building you make should make people feel good.”

Felix Mara & Peter Durant(Speaking about Richard MacCormac’s design)

MacCormac describes the small site, a short walk from Cheltenham General Hospital’s oncology department, as ‘a place apart’. The main volume, a linear single-story building aligned with the River Chelt, nestles against the lodge of a former Victorian bathhouse. Diminutive pods and external spaces complete this cluster of buildings, articulated in a Soanean manner by glazed links - an urban composition in miniature. This cluster of buildings is an urban composition in miniature. The site is set back from the road and is approached either from a car park or along a path, that winds though a garden designed by Christine Facer Hoffman. According to Hoffman, the velvety folds in its lawn symbolise cancer’s ups and downs and the motif of the sigmoid curve, employed as a tool in cancer treatment, is used here as a metaphor for life. You approach the entrance through a deep trellised screen and gate; something that tried to look cool or iconic might have seemed comical next to the gingerbread-house lodge. If you dismiss the trellis’s square grid as a MacCormac trademark that belongs to another era, you’ll be in for some surprises. MacCormac is a past master of this type of drama. He anticipates patients proceeding further every time they visit: first as far as the office, then venturing into the main space and finally exploring the yoga room beyond and the pods. These circular retreats are described by acCormac as ‘slightly Hobbit-like’. The glass-roofed entrance lobby has no institutionalising reception area and opens onto the principal space, a long communal area and dining room with a large open kitchen at its west end and a zone that can be used for smaller group activities, to the east. With a glazed inglenook that, in conjunction with hinged oak screens, demarcates this from the main communal area, MacCormac returns to his exploration of the idea of a building within a building, seen at the chapel at Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge. This space has a vigorous structural parti, with long-span beams on its main axis, supported by eight Miesian cruciform columns. Concealed steel joists cantilever from these beams, >> enabling the shallow roof to sail over the continuous clerestory glazing, like Wright’s Usonian houses, another influence. The overhanging soffit and the wide sill below reflect light into the space. There are occasional moments of direct overhead and sideways-cast daylight but, contradicting the brief, MacCormac wanted users to enjoy subtle, reflected daylight, rather than being ‘blasted by the sky’.The circular retreats are described as ‘Hobbit-like’. The horizontal windows, with heads below eye level, provide views and additional reflected light that interacts with the warm, reflective gold and pink paint finishes, chosen in consultation with Jocasta Innes. At one point during my visit, the reflected daylight is dramatically transformed as a cloud passes overhead. This space’s horizontality is countered by vertical elements such as windows and doorways. Its strong geometry is balanced by meticulous attention to detail that conveys human scale, helping users to engage with the building. ‘In a way the building is a big piece of furniture with a roof on top’, says MacCormac. French philosopher Gaston Bachelard’s musings on corners, shelves, nests, drawers and the idea of the home as a refuge from the world inspired his pursuit of intimacy. ‘The test of what we’re trying to do is whether a cat would

be comfortable’, he adds.

Cheltenham

The enterance of Maggie’s Cheltenham is through an enclosed and highly landscaped garden with several discrete sitting areas. The ground floor rooms offer private one-to-one spaces whereas the kitchen in the new extension aims to facilitate communal interaction. The large table, inglenook and stove, comfortable seating, bookcases and fresh flowers make it feel homely and comforting. The intention of the design was that the building, with its combination of openness and intimacy can provide a sanctuary away from the busy hospital which will complement the emotional and psychological support provided by the Maggie’s Cheltenham staff. The architect, Sir Richard MacCormac is one of the UK’s most distinguished architects and chairman of the internationally renowned practice MJP Architects, formerly MacCormac Jamieson and Pritchard Architects. Dr Christine Hoffman has previously had a successful career in medical science and now runs a dynamic landscape design practice specialising in contemporary design. Her garden design at Maggie’s Cheltenham has created ‘a metaphorical landscape of hope designed to calm, soothe and

inspire with the empowering beauty of nature’.


Nottingham

Piers Gough CBE is a well-known architect and was a personal friend of Maggie Keswick Jencks. He is famous for his bold and imaginative architecture and has created a playful, open plan design for Maggie’s Nottingham. The near symmetrical design and generous height allows Maggie’s Nottingham to have a sense of space and balance. The elevated oval building of glazed ceramic tile floats over a smaller basement, with plants growing up the sides. Balconies will extend from the kitchen and meeting rooms and a patio will open onto the garden, which is designed to use scent and texture to create a secluded and uplifting area for people to enjoy. Nottingham-born fashion designer Sir Paul Smith is designing the interior of Maggie’s Nottingham. His design will include photos taken during

his travels round the world.


Piers Gough(Speaks about his design)

“The light, peaceful and non-institutional design of Maggie’s Nottingham will be a sanctuary for all those who walk through the door. Sheltered by trees, the centre will be a homely, comfortable space next to the busy hospital, where anyone affected by cancer can come to relax. The centre is a safe space where visitors can engage with nature while being sheltered from the elements. From the outside the playful appearance will entice people to take a look through the door; once they do the

harmony of light and space will create a uniquely welcoming environment.”

Sir Paul Smith

“I am delighted to be involved in creating this centre for people living with cancer and their family and friends. It will be a great resource for everyone and a fantastic new addition to the city. Piers

Gough is an incredible architect and it has been a joy to work together on the design.”

Marcus Fairs from DEZEEN(Speaks about Rorger Stirk Harbour & Partners design)

Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners’ Maggie’s Centre exceeds at every level in fulfilling the most demanding of briefs: to create a sanctuary for terminally ill cancer sufferers with client Charles Jencks, whose deep conviction of architecture’s power to shape our experience has led to a series

of cancer care centres creating a fitting memorial to his wife Maggie.

This quietly confident building is truly, unquestionably a haven for those who have been diagnosed with cancer. Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners’ achievement is in having created a completely

informal, home-like sanctuary to help patients learn to live with cancer.

Conceived as a two-storey pavilion, the centre’s positive spirit is signalled with a bold roof canopy that hovers high above the walls to sail protectively over a series of intimate internal gardens, courtyards and roof terraces. A deep orange rendered wall puts a protective arm around it, making it a place apart without denying it is a part of the city. This antithesis of a hospital

provides an open house in the city.

Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners has produced a timeless work of architecture that not only distils the intentions of this brief but expresses in built form compassion, sensitivity and a deep

sense of our common humanity.

London

The first purpose-built Maggie’s Centre in England was opened by Nigella Lawson and Sarah Brown on 29 April 2008. The new Centre at Charing Cross Hospital, London.

Building on the passion for landscape architecture of Maggie’s founder, Maggie Keswick Jencks, Maggie’s London is surrounded by a specially designed garden and series of intimate internal courtyards by leading landscape designer Dan Pearson. Designed by Roger Stirk Harbour + Partners, Maggie’s London is the first of a network of Centres for England and Wales. The Joy of Living campaign aims to raise £15 million to build new Maggie’s Centres in the North East, South West Wales, Nottingham, Oxford and the Cotswolds by 2012. “I am delighted to open the first Maggie’s Centre in London. Richard Rogers and his team have created both a stunning piece of architecture and, crucially, an intimate and supportive domestic centre which will have a positively helpful impact on people living with cancer” - Nigella Lawson“The opening of Maggie’s in London will provide a fantastic service for anyone diagnosed with cancer in the capital. These world-class designed Centres have offered professional support and information for people in Scotland and it is a tribute to this success that they have been invited to London and other locations in England and

Wales” - Sarah Brown


MD.net ClinicTokyo

Japanese designers Nendo have completed the interior of a mental health clinic in Akasaka, Tokyo, where none of the doors open and patients and staff instead move around the building by opening sections of the walls. Called MD.net Clinic Akasaka, the project includes sliding bookcases behind which the consultation rooms can be found and a single opening door at the end of the corridor that reveals a window to the outside. The interior design for a mental health clinic in Akasaka, Tokyo. The clinic specializes in total mental health care: in addition to standard consultations with a psychiatrist, it offers such services as corporate consulting and support for patients returning to

the workplace.

Case Study One

AOHAL ClinicTokyo

“The continuousness that the volume of a tree creates” - A project of a beauty dermatologist clinic in Azabujuban, Minato Ward, Tokyo with the backup of Rohto Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. To secure a detailed functional layout and a movement line secure on three narrow floors were required. Continuousness on each floor and a psychological settling down are given to the space by forming each floor, the vertical line and the functions that are adjacent to this by using oak. To make a library around the first main entrance in movement line by oak, this library works not only as a

waiting room, but also as a symbol of the clinic.

Case Study One

Friends’ GardenGreat Ormond Street, London

Spacelab worked with multi award-winning gardener Andy Sturgeon to create a calm, green oasis on the roof of Great Ormond Street hospital for staff, which capitalises on fantastic views across London, and doubles up as a venue for functions. The distinction between inside and outside is blurred, with folding sliding doors that peel back and internal flooring that extends out on to the terrace. Planting is used to create semi-private areas outside, and raised platforms of grass feature timber borders that double up as seating. The rooftop garden was named NHS Best External Space

at the Building Better Healthcare Awards in 2008.

Case Study Three

Culm Valley Health CentreCollumpton

The intelligent Waiting Room (iWR) is a core initiative e to enhance self-care and personal wellbeing, and to offer new social solutions where these can replace medical interventions. The Culm Valley Health Centre is the first to adopt the iWR. iWR brings efficiency savings to the NHS: reviving dead space - waiting rooms are unproductive estate; optimizing service time - NHS users spend twice as long waiting than appointments as with health professionals; building upstream value – the end

plan is at modest cost to help reduce the much greater costs of hospital care.

iWR brings a number of features to transform the experience of waiting for health care and the effectiveness of self-care information:

1) MySelfCare: a new user-friendly guide to self-care optionsbased both on best evidence and public narratives, designed also for the user to generate personalised health plans; to be provided in a dedicated waiting room computer console along with other related on-line programs for self-care;

2) A Health Facilitator to bring self-care information alive, to set up activities and self-help groups, to optimise access to practice facilities, and to engage with patients in the use of MySelfCare;

3) A package of guidelines and prospects for new community activities and educational opportunities, both within health centres and in neighbouring locations (eg gardens, cafés, community centres),

both for the public, and for Health Trainers and other professionals;

4) New design features to provide the most congenial environment for health improvement in waiting areas, including quiet zones, flexible meeting and class spaces,and information services.

Case Study Four

Rolex Learning Centre(by SANAA, Lausanne, Switzerland)

I like how the curves of the exterior are incorporated in the interior as well. The holes in the roof are essentially for allowing natural light into to the huge room. The AIR Building is no where near as big as this but it is interesting to see how exterior curves can be brought into the interior to make the

whole building feel harmonious.

SANAA’s Rolex Learning Centre re-examines ideas of spatial order, with one giant room. “Since Gerrit Rietveld and Frank Lloyd Wright exploded the box, and Hans Scharoun and Le Corbusier orchestrated their architectural routes, there have been few major paradigm shifts in the spatial order of modern architecture. Some have come close. But as the image of buildings has become increasingly commodified, the virtuosity of spaces designed by architects such as Frank Gehry and Zaha Hadid is all too often smothered by disengaged forms that serve their own exuberant ends. Japanese architectural duo SANAA, however, exercise greater restraint in pursuit of a new spatial order. Adopting a muted architectural language, they consistently focus on how to make people, places and programmes coalesce. The construction of this building does of course deserve detailed scrutiny, with its 20,000m² footprint defined by an incredible low-slung concrete shell, anchored to a single-storey basement by 70 pre-stressed cables, and poured as a single element in just two days. However, while few other architects would resist celebrating the project’s significant technical achievements, SANAA prefers to discuss the surface of the shell, providing as it does a clear uninterrupted terrain.”

‘The concept of the building was to make one very big room, where people and programmes can meet together to have better communication,’ explains Nishizawa. ‘There are no walls to divide, so any

programme can meet anywhere. It is more like a park.’

I really like how Gnädinger Architekten have been able to make a space which is neither inside nor outside. The balcony/surround of the building is topped with a sort of lattice, allowing for a sense

of shelter yet still open to the elements.

Science Center, Medizintechnik Otto Bock, Healthcare(by Gnädinger Architekten, Berlin)

Retirement Home(by B més R 29, La Bordeta)

This Retirement home is located at La Bordeta, Lleida, Spain. I love the minimal design but I don’t think it works when taking into consideration the purpose of the building. It doesn’t look comfortable or homely, it even looks a bit too clean. It is pretty much the oppersite of how I would like to design the new Maggie’s Centre, although, like the retirement home, I will make the interior distinactly different from the surround enviroment (of the hospital). I have also taken inspiration from how

they divide this large volume of space into several smaller rooms.

“The expanded volume unfolds like a big box rotated that shapes the lighting and creates indoor privacy through contrasting elements.”

“We have been able to realize a clinical facility that sets a new standard, where the partnership we have with the patients and the support we provided is mirrored in our physical place, where our

whole-person approach to health is reflect in every detail of our building.”

“As architects, we rarely have the opportunity to design a project with a mission that aligns so profoundly with our own. One of the strongest threads running through Duda/Paine’s work is the emphasis we place on the human experience of architecture—how we understand our surroundings episodically, experiencing with our senses and interpreting with our intellect. Just as the visionaries behind Duke’s integrative medicine program view well being as an holistic endeavor that embraces mind, body, and spirit, our approach to design unifies theory and practice by focusing on the human

experience.”

Health Care for the Duke Integrative Medicine (by Duda/Paine, Durham, North Carolina)

The Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center(By Frank Gehry, Las Vegas)

This building is a centre for brain health which includes people suffering from illnesses such as dementia, bipolar and Alzheimer’s .

Gehrys’ philosophy behind the design was that he wanted to make a soaring room with windows everywhere: to the blue sky, the brown mountains, the red stone pyramid of the Clark County Government Center across the street. The neon of the

Las Vegas Strip stretches off to the south.

“This building is a generator of funds for all those things,” Gehry said of the “This is going to be a fundraising tool to raise money for research,” he said.

Gehry’s design splits the complex into a pair of separate and essentially freestanding wings. A four-story structure to the north, which holds medical offices, patient rooms and research space, is relatively straightforward, a collection of stacked

boxes in white stucco and glass.

To the south, across an open-air courtyard, is a soaring, single-room event space beneath a wildly undulating stainless-steel roof. This is among the most impressive interior spaces that the architect’s firm, Gehry Partners, has produced since Disney Hall opened in 2003. Its appeal will help underwrite the mission of the Ruvo Center, since the organization plans to rent it out nearly every weekend to outside

groups.

Good architecture creates environments that are, among other things, enjoyable to spend time in and practical to use, and in no scenario is this more important than the provision of treatment or support for those dealing with illness or trauma. Architonic examines some of the ways in which intelligent architecture and design can help to ensure a positive prognosis for the future of healthcare

by creating buildings that are good for body and mind.

Happiness and good health go hand in hand, and one of the factors that determines our state of mind is the quality of our surroundings. When we are ill, upset or stressed, our heightened sense of vulnerability leaves us craving a comfortable, familiar and safe environment. The design of hospitals or other public services where people seek help or support requires a particularly sensitive approach to minimise the sense of anxiety that they can invoke and instead offer a welcoming and hassle-free

place for people to deal with their problems.

In 1930, Alvar Aalto completed the Paimio Sanatorium in southern Finland, which still provides a blueprint for how to design healthcare facilities that respond to both the physical and psychological needs of their patients. As a place of recuperation for those affected by tuberculosis, the sanatorium featured expansive terraces where patients could benefit from sunlight and plentiful clean air – the best known treatment at the time – but Aalto was also aware of the importance of designing a

therapeutic interior, as the recovery could be a lengthy process.

The dining room offered plenty of natural light thanks to double-height windows, with sun blinds outside to prevent glare

Alvar Aalto's Paimio Sanatorium combines a functionalist aesthetic with an empathic approach to the use of interior and exterior spaces; photo © Gustaf Welin / Alvar Aalto Museum, 1930s

Can Architecture Heal?

Aspects of Aalto's design were influenced by Dutch architect Johannes Duiker's Zonnestraal Sanatorium in Hilversum, Netherlands, which was completed in 1925. Here, private and public spaces were carefully arranged to suit the patients' various needs and the complex also housed a nursery, pig farm, aviary and workshops, all intended to support the revolutionary programme of physical treatment, combined with occupational therapy, that would help ready the patients for their return to everyday life. Bierman Henket architecten and Wessel de Jonge architecten were awarded the 2010 World Monuments Fund/Knoll Modernism Prize for the restoration of the complex, which

is once more providing medical care facilities to the local community.

Unfortunately, many contemporary hospitals and public service providers suffer from a lack of vision and resources, resulting in buildings whose depressingly ugly façades are matched by their impractical interiors. Whilst the public sector in many countries currently struggles to reduce costs, some private healthcare providers are commissioning top architects to help them raise the standard of their facilities. Private health company Circle hired Foster + Partners to design their first new-build hospital in Bath, England, and are set to work with the practices of Richard Rogers and Michael

Hopkins on future projects.

The ‘corridor-less’ layout is practical and designed to promote a sense of community; architecture: Foster + Partners, photo: Nigel Young

‘Good design can heal’(an article written by Christine Murray)

“I spent most of last week in an Italian hospice, at the bedside of a dear friend and cousin who is terminally ill and will die sometime in the next few weeks.

Life becomes simple in the face of death, boiled down to the immediate things that really matter. My cousin’s existence is now a routine of meals he no longer enjoys, pain medication, visitors and naps,

waiting for the inevitable.

In that room, even with a 24-hour news channel playing softly in the background, it was difficult to concentrate on the budget, planning changes or any other issues of the day. It is amazing how the

so-called ‘big issues’ fade away when time is finite.

Impossible to ignore in that compact room, however, was the architecture. Fortuitously in this case, as the quality of the room gave the proceedings a sense of decency and dignity. Unlike some UK hospitals, which pay lip service to domesticity, the hospice room was literally domestic, both in scale and aesthetic. It had large, openable timber windows, a balcony and an unusually large en-suite

bathroom with a shower – more generous than many a volume-built micro-flat.

Not a single fitting felt institutional, from the coat hooks behind the door to the comfy chair by the window. How grateful I was for the hand of the architect that designed that room. I felt, as former nurse Laura Lee has said of the Maggie’s Centres she commissions, that these design decisions were making us, patient included, feel better. Maggie’s Centres aren’t hospices, but at their heart is a kitchen with a well-used kettle and a bathroom that offers privacy for crying – it’s this home-like

atmosphere that makes the centres feel humane.

As a family, we felt cared for by the architecture, and it allowed us to think that if you had to go, it wasn’t such a bad place to be. When the time comes, we should all be so lucky.”

Angie MacDonald(A summery of notes from Angie’s Lecture)

Angie MacDonald is currently studying at University College Falmouth for a PHd in Garden and Health Care. She has based her studies on three important questions What role can a garden play

in health care?, What is a healing garden? and Why have hospitals always had gardens?

She has undergone thorough research in how and why people use the gardens, where they go and what they do in them. She also carried out interviews with Maggie Centre users as well as photo elicitation experiments. She asked users to walk around the garden by themselves with a camera and take four photographs of anything they like and write down why. Angie showed us

the photographs with the comments that had been written to accompany them. The comments all seemed rather profound; “The winding path, a metaphor for building up the momentum to get

through the door.” “The contrast of colour - very much alive.” “I love that the plants are scented”, “Maybe it needs more colour in the winter.” “I always follow the curves in my mind” “It’s very

beautiful - the grace of sadness.” “The roofs are contained, the leaves are not” “... huge leaves, it is so comforting.” “There are different ways to experience: shadows, patterns, little movements. It fine

tunes, makes us aware.”

Angie told us about the experiences she’d had of the Maggie’s centres, although she concentrated mainly on the garden and landscape side of the buildings she also confessed that she had to start to look at the interior architecture. Maggie’s centres are very much about bringing psychological and physical light into a space, therefore in many centres the architects have designed ways of

maximising and incorporating the ‘outside’ into the ‘inside’.

Above all Maggie’s Centres are designed to be a second home. Many cancer patients will be left to go home to an empty house, they will have nobody to speak to. Others will be looking for the answer of ‘How do you tell someone you have cancer?’ - Everybody needs help. The centres have

been surprisingly well used by an equal amount of men and women, ethnic groups and ages. Men often find it harder to seek help than women, but these centres make it easier for men to join in without making themselves feel venerable or alone. Bruce, 46 years of age and a prostate cancer

patient somes it up pretty well, “Its like walking into your best friends mum’s house.”

Maggie’s Centres need to be a juxtaposition to hospitals.

‘Normal’ hospital experiances:

After speaking to a cancer patient who knew nothing of the Maggie’s Centres I have found the breif a little harder. I told him about the Maggie’s Centres and about the existing designs but his reaction was rather negative in terms of the idea. “Everybody who has cancer knows they have

cancer, the last thing they want to do is hang out in a place with hundreds of other people in the same situation”, he also said he didnt want to be a ‘cuddled’ or patronised by a building designed

to be soft and colourful to lift peoples mood. “A hospital is a place you go to if you have broken your arm and they fix it, I don’t think they are particularly uninviting because you also know a

hospital is full of life safing experts” - I can see where he is coming from, there definatly needs to be a balence between

the beauty of design and the ‘homely’ atmosphere of these centres.

The User:

Maggie Centre experiences:

“Maggie’s has shown me how to regain hope and determination whilst still allowing for the emotional reality of it all.” - Robert, during treatment for prostate cancer

“We only have a limited time to talk to patients and faced with cancer people only take in so much time. Maggie’s makes the information available when people are ready to use it.” - Alistair

Thompson, Professor of Surgical Oncology at The University of Dundee Medical School

“I felt safe and secure, uplifted and welcome.” - Julia, after her diagnosis of breast cancer

“We have good doctors... But Maggie’s is the jewel in the crown of what we do here.” - Mike Dixon, Surgeon, Western General Hospital

“At Maggie’s you can say what you want without the fear of upsetting family or friends.” - Rodger, after his diagnosis of bowel cancer

“People here understand. They have a darn good idea what you’re going through” - Harry, caring for his wife

“The impact of a cancer diagnosis for the majority of people is quite a huge and overwhelming experience and coming to Maggie’s is about talking through those experiences and finding a way of

supporting yourself and your family through that experience.” - Leroy Carter, Cancer Patient

“It is really important for us to be able to care for ourselves during that process as well so as a small team we support each other extremely well and effectively. Maggie’s is an organisation that

provides an infrastructure of support and training.” - Andrew Anderson, Cancer Nurse

The User:

The AIR Building is made up of 6 arching sections of just over 5.5metres wide and just over 12 metres in length. It has two floors, the enterance is on the first floor with one flight of stairs oppersite,

leading to the ground floor.

At the moment the brand new building feels far from comforting, the high ceilings, white walls the space feels open and rather naked.

The building faces away from the enterance, looking out onto the surrounding fields. The wall facing the fields is prodominantly open to the view allowing the spacc to be flooded with natural light,

which is an important feature in Maggie’s designs.

Understanding the Existing Building:

Analysing the Site

How does the surrounding environment affect the interior? The site is close to the hospital yet the idea of the centres are to create as much distance mentally from the hospital as possible therefore the focus must be on the facade that faces away from the hospital as people will not want to be constantly

reminded where they actually are.

What role does history plan in the reinvention of the interior space? In this case the history of the building is irrelevant as it is a newly built

construction.

How does the position effect the interior? The sun doesn’t have much of a chance of really penetrating the interior as the windowed facade doesn’t get any direct sun during the

day.

What construction methods will I working with? The building works to a grid structure, a

series of steel beams support the building.

What is your immediate emotional response to

the space:

What is a postitive site attribute/factor:

What is a negative site attribute/factor:

What is the orientation of the site:

How could the interior be improved and

remodelled:

Analysis of the site Design problem Possible response

Very large, open space,Feels clinical, too clean, too

empty, boring,Far from ‘cosy’

Large amount of natural light, lovely arched ceilings

Large, open space, feelsrather clinical

Th e enterance is on the oppersite side to the large

windows which look out onto the surrounding countryside

At the moment the interior is far too clean and open, it does’nt feel cosy but there is alot of space to work with

Create small, private and cosy areas where people can

escape and hide

Light is a key fact in Maggie’s Centre, maxmise the use of the light source. Perhaps use the arched roof as a running

line

Create small, private and cosy areas where people can escape and hide by divding the space into much smaller

and inimate areas

Excentuate the feeling of looking out to the peaceful countryside setting and the

feeling that the building is turning its back on the surrounding chaos of the

hospital

Th e interior needs to welcome, comfort and inspire users without being imposing,

itimidating or patronising

The building in plan:

MAIN ENTERANCE

STAIRS

FIRE ExIT

VOID

MEZZANINE FLOOR

WINDOWS

FIRE ExIT

LIFT

RECEPTION AREA

WINDOWSWINDOWS

Exterior elevation

Ground floor plan

STAIRS

VOIDSUPPORTING COLUMNS

WINDOWS

The building in section:

WINDOWS

CURVED ECO ROOF

MAIN ENTERANCE

STAIRS

FIRE ExIT

MAIN ENTERANCE MEZZANINE FLOOR

SECOND FLOOR

Short Section

Short Section

Long Section

STAIRS

MEZZANINE FLOORFIRE ExIT

GROUND FLOOR

The Architects Drawings:

THE BUILDING SITS RATHER DISCREETLY ON THE EDGE OF THE COMPLEx

Entrance-welcoming

- not obvious - not intimidating

-coat/umbrella stand-information library

-casual reception area

(Should be able to see a clear layout of the building from

the entrance e.g. kitchen area and fireplace/lounge.)

Office Space (x2)- telephone

- computer point-light-shelf

-draw space

5 Smaller Workstations- telephone

-comupter point- light-shelf

- draw space

Office appliances & storage- photocopier

- printer/scanner-storage- server

- other office machinery

Video viewing/ computer link area- monitor

- dvd player- seating 4-8-computer

-mouse-keyboard

Schedule of Accommodation:

Kitchen- large table to seat 12+

- perhaps an island - cooker

- sink- kettle

-cupboards (storage)- comfortable seating

(as well as seating surrounding the table)

Sitting Room- fire place/ fish tank

- comfortable seating (12+)

Large Room (14+)- stroage for folding chairs etc.

-should be a flexi-space

2 Smaller Treatment Rooms- (for 12)- fireplace

- facing a window- dividing wall- treatment bed- sound proofing

Small space to lie down- bed

- bookshelf- chair

- sound proof

Lavatories (x3)- toilet- sink

- bookshelf-chairs

Garden- private areas

-water feature?

What does the User..

Want Need

SupportTo not be too noticed

on entryTo be subtly noticed

on entryInformation

A welcoming atmosphere A variety of ways to gain knowledge and support

Invited and welcome to join in

BooksComputer Links

Video Viewing People

Classes

Who will be using the space and what are their requirements?Patients and their families, doctors, councillors, workshop staff, visiting chefs

How many people will be using the space?10+ Staff, 30+ Users

How long will the space be being used for?All day drop-in but probably most busy when the hospital is open

What does the client hope to achieve through commissioning the work?A positive, inspiring environment for cancer sufferers and staff - somewhere other than the

hospital, a homely, communal and inviting space

Who is the User?Cancer patients, their family and friends, doctors, counsellors, cookery teachers, yoga teachers

and visiting lecturers.

How will this interior appeal to them?It will be a welcoming and warm atmosphere, the first floor will be rather open plan with semi-divide between the kitchen and the rest of the space. The first floor is the social area whereas the ground floor will be for the treatment rooms, toilets, quiet reading and information rooms.

How you adapt the building to accommodate its new use. How it is subdivided to create new spaces, how is the circulation rethought? How do you select an appropriate architectural

language that is sympathetic to the host building?I will keep the main entrance where it is, to the left there will be a large, open sitting room with a fireplace in a floor to ceiling wall which will make up the walls of the courtyard below. Behind the sitting room will be the kitchen which will have a large table capable to seat about 14 people. The table will bridge across 3 levels of seating, high stools/standing, normal height seating and floor level seating all of which will be arranged around the same table. The ground floor will contain the 3 main treatment rooms, toilets, information rooms and the garden. The ground floor will be split into sections corresponding directly to the existing sections of the

building.

How you understand what the location offers and what makes it unique?The building faces North and away from the rest of the site. Its view is of the surrounding

countryside. The building gives a sense of being rather high up which is nice.

How you identify the problems?The building is long , thin and has two floors - The brief is rather detailed in its concept but can I find a way of working to the brief without conforming to a bright and colourful space, I want

the design to be inspiring and not at all patronising.

How you resolve any problems?I would like to move the stairs because at the moment I don’t think they are in a great position, they are in the centre of the space and use up quite a lot of valuable window space which is probably better used within the rooms. Also I don’t think they are compact enough, I don’t like

how they are so open and visible.

How you enhance the positives or unlock the potential?The building has a great view, a great size, a lovely structure and a lot of natural light. The amount of natural light is the eastern end of the building will get full morning sun, west will get full afternoon sun North gets a good mixture which is why I will have the sitting room in the centre of the building and the kitchen in the west side as it will get most of the afternoon sun -

which is when users are likely to use the building the most.

How it is subdivided to create new spaces /experiences?The first floor will be open plan so that the layout is very clear and welcoming. The ground floor

will be a lot more divided to ensure there are some private spaces that can be sound proofed.

How to rethink the circulation route?The main entrance will remain in its existing place although there will be access to an outside terrace on the left. This will allow potential users to have a look around before actually entering the building, it can also be used as a secondary entrance/exit. As the user enters the building they will walk into the ‘Social’ area, this will be made up of an open plan sitting room with a fireplace and they will be able to see the kitchen behind the sitting room. There will be a couple of casual

desks and smaller seating areas where staff will ensure they are welcomed appropriately.

How you select an appropriate architectural language?The last thing I want the design to be is patronising. I want it to be a well designed, rather basic, mature space. I don’t want there to be a lot of clutter or fuss, it will be comforting in a clean and tidy way. Lighting is very important, I will use the lighting as a way of lowering the ceiling height,

making the space more intimate and cosy.

Applying Concept Strategies

At the moment the main enterance is on the Southern facade of the building, I think I will keep it here or move it to the Eastern side of the building. The stairs are in rather an odd place, they divide the building into 2 with a void stretching down the Northern side facade. The windows on the Northern side are a real bonus as they will get alot of light for the majority of the day. The down stairs is split into 6 sections like the first floor. I think working with the sections will be a good idea in order to make the building symmetrical.

(the red circles indicate areas I would like to change)

Concept Strategies

Here is my revised concept stategy, after moving the stairs around for a long time I think they will be best here. The first floor will be open plan apart from the upside-down pyramid which will seperate the kitchen and the sitting room, it will also act as a wall which a fireplace will be built into. I also thought it’d be a great place for projecting onto the wall.

The Ground floor was harder to apply a clear strategy to as I will need to fit in things like bathrooms, 3 treatment rooms, reading room etc.. so its quite hard to not work in exact scale and proportions for this but I have a basic idea of where they would be situated in order for them to be used best. The garden is the main focus of the ground floor, everything will revolve around the courtyard. I wanted the stairs to lead down to this floor leading the user to one end and giving them a view of the rest of the building as they come down.

TerraceSiTTingrooM

WorkSTaTionS

kiTchen

MainenTerance

MainTreaTMenT

rooM

garden&

courTyard

TreaTMenT rooM

TreaTMenT rooM

readingrooM

BaThrooMS

Concept Strategies(in elevation)

This is a really quick sketch of the basic elevation from the outside. It will look like a shard of glass that has fallen through the building, it is quite brutal but it enables some good too (the garden). I like how it contrasts with the existing exterior curves and think the funnel

shape of the walls will optimise the light in the garden beneath.

Its quite hard to visualise how the pryamid willl sit in the builing. Here I was trying to figure out if it would be better to have an uneven pryamid or not. I concluded that an equal pryamid will work best in the space due to head heights and allowing the first floor to stay

as open plan as possible.

Also I thought the pryamid could also act as a wall which the fire place will sit against but also it will create a screen to be used with a projector so that the sitting room has a double

function as a comfortable video streaming / lecture room.

Here is a quick sketch of the interior section. The green to the left of the pyramid will be where the kitchen is and the yellow shows the sitting room. Beneath the pryramid will be

the garden which will be surrounded by the courtyard.

Concept Strategies(tested in scale)

ccBB

aa

This shows the section BB, a view of how the pryamid will split through the centre of the buidling, leaving a

corridoor on either side of it.

This shows the section CC, the view of the kitchen space. It illustrates the three levels of seating - the high stools on the right, the standard chair height in the middle

and the ‘floor’ height area on the far right.

This is the section AA, it gives a view of the Southern side of the building.

‘Innovations in Hospital Architecture’(by Stephen Verderbar 2010, Routledge, New York)

Joshua Prince-Ramus on Seattle’s Library(TED Talks)

In this lecture Joshua Ramus talks about his design process for design the Seattle library. What I found really interesting was how he used the data given to him about how books, newspapers, maps, videos etc. were used and directly split this into the square footage of the building and how he considered the future use of the building as the technology changes through time. Below is a diagram of the use (in terms of square footage) of the use of each area, he then put this literally into a model only making exceptions for the reading room which needed to over look the

water and the main entrance should have a public plaza in front of it.

Such a simple design process but extreamly effective let alone sensible.

Ergonomics

Ergonomic Fundermentals:

Who are the users?

What do they do?

How do workers perform their job?

Where do users engage in tasks?

Why does the user do what they do when they do it?

Eronomic Stratagies

*Adapt the workspace for the user/worker

* Support work in the way that it is done

* Provide appropriate user control

* Emphasize ease of use

* Provide for personalization of space

Design Approaches:

Th ere are three fundamental approaches to design concerning economics to accommodate indervidual diff erences while similtaniously meeting the needs of

the popultion of users:

* Design for the extreames

* Design for the average

* Design for the adjustable range

Within the design for the Maggie’s Centre there will need to be workspaces which will be shared by many people so it is important to research how this can be done whilst still producing an individual and personalized workstation as well as being fl exible to their specifi c needs. As well as the workstations the design has to be comforting and settling to a range of users, the space cannot be too kind in a way that it may ‘pat them on the head’ as they enter but also it cannot be too harsh. I want the building to be rather plain in most aspects, a mature space that has considered the user at all times - I think this will make the user feel supported more than anything else. I don’t want there to be a patronising amount of beanbags and soft furnishings to attempt to ease their pain. Although there should be some

areas like this.

fl exible to their specifi c needs. As well as the workstations the design has to be

Disabled Access

Th ere will be a lift between the fi rst and ground fl oors.

Th e sitting room will have one step on one side and a small ramp on the other.

Th e Kitchen table will have a movable ramp which slides from the level to bridge the small incline to the seating area

Fire Exits

Declaring, defining and dividing space

The first floor will be very much open plan although there will be clear ‘areas’ of space such as the kicthen, sitting room and the workstaitions.

The kichen will be defined by the table and the change in atmosphere - it will be darker than the rest of the room and the walls which make up the courtyard will

divide the room slightly.

The sitting room will be defined by lowering the floor level and grouping furniture (as will the workstations) The sitting room will face towards a fireplace but should

be very visable on initally entering the building.

The workstations will be open to staff and to visitors - I want them to be inviting for visitors to feel welcome to come and chat with the staff.

The ground floor needs to be slightly more private. The courtyard and garden split the space into two sections. The main treatment/meeting room will be on the other side of the courtyard ensuring that visitors have to walk through it before and after their meeting. The toilets and the quiet rest room will be behind the stairs leading from the first floor so they are in the centre of the buildings

circulation route.

The other two treatment/meeting rooms will be between the stairs and the courtyard. One of these rooms will also be a library. These rooms will be very comfortable and I will focus on interesting ways of lighting them because lighting

plays a huge role in feeling compleatly comfortable.

Sylvester, 2001.Weatherproof steel, 163 x 492 x 380 in.

courtesy of gagosian gallery

Strike: To roberta and rudy, 1969.hot rolled steel, 96 x 288 x 1 in.

Peter Moore

elevational Wedge, 2001.hot rolled steel, 5 x 130 x 259.9 in.


Betwixt the Torus and the Sphere, 2001.Weatherproof steel, 142 x 450 x 319 in.


I looked into Richard Serra’s sculptural exhibition ‘Torqued Spirals, Toruses and Spheres’. I think he’s pieces are really interesting because most of them are designed to walk into or around - he uses rather conventual ways of creating spaces but in a new way. Its the simplicity of his designs that make them interesting. From here I took inspiration for lowering the floor to define the sitting room - sort of the

‘Elevation Wedge’ he designed but in reverse.

Elements & Composition of the Interior Space

What are the fundamental elements key to the creation of the interior space? The key elements consist private and communal office space, the sitting room, kitchen, the courtyard and garden, treatment rooms and

bathrooms

How does the interior architecture use the walls, floors and ceilings The walls will be limited on the first floor, the space will be very open. There will be two low partions to divide the office space and the sitting room as I wanted the building to remain very open plan. The slanted walls of the courtyard will add a contemporary feel to the space as will the small peep holes cut into the walls enabling people to look into the garden without making the people in the garden feel as if they are being watched. The ceiling on both the first and ground floors will be made to feel lower and therefore cosy by using low hanging lights. On the ground floor walls there will be more walls in order to define and make certain areas such as

treatment rooms private.

How does the interior architecture impart character and quality within the building? The slanted walls of the courtyard as they extend through the first floor of the building creating two short corridors will add a contemporary feel in contrast to the natural materials much as white brick and wood. The design will be mature and

not at all patronising.

How will users perceive the space? Hopefully the users will appreciate the clean cut design of the first floor and understand that the idea of having an open air garden on the ground floor has provoked the task of dealing with the design of the walls which extend through the first floor. I also hope they perceive the space as a communal yet cosy design as this is a fundamental aspect

within Maggie’s Centres.

What role do external elements play in the composition of the interior space? The external elements are the key to this design as the concept is based around designing an interior garden

which is open to the elements as research has lead me to believe that inviting fresh air into the building as well as nature itself will aid the physical and mental recover

of cancer patients.

How do we move within the interior space? With the building being open plan, it is very easy to navigate - it is also clear as to where certain spaces are by defining them by using lighting, grouping furniture, ceiling platforms

and lowering floor levels.

Do devices such as doors play a role in the composition of the interior space? The doors on the ground floor are all rather symmetrical to one an other as I wanted there to be a clear route through the building to avoid confusion for first time visitors, I wouldn’t want them to have to take a tour by a member of staff for them to find a certain room, I want them to be able

to do it themselves.

The Workstations & Offices

I watched an interview with Steve McDowell and Elif Tinny from BNIM Architects. They talk about the way that BNIM Architects answered a challenge to reconsider the future of the office space. Of course they discuss this in terms of the design world but I think it applies to any office space, especially in the Maggie’s Centre as offices will play an essential role in the overall atmosphere and the success of the

centre.

AIA asksed BNIM Architects to answer the question ‘What will future offices look like?’ They came to the conclusion this is probably the wrong question, its more ‘How are we going to work together?’, ‘How are we going to become more effiective in collective manner?’ I think this is an extreamly important point concerning Maggie’s Centres as I think ‘workstations’ should be more of a seating area shared by staff and visitors, hopefully this casual style office space will make visitors feel

less intimidated about approaching staff and vice versa.

In order for the offices to work in the best way possible for the staff and the visitors I have decided on having various types of workstations:

* Large table for about 10 people

* A ‘focus booth’ - a quiet and private booth to work in

* Casual and flexible seating area

Large Table Casual and Flexible seating areaFocus Booth

The Kitchen

The kitchen will be the main social area of the centre. The oversized table is wide enough for either side to feel slightly private from the other and the length enables at least 12 people to sit at it at any one time. I love the idea of having a range of levels and different types of seating available as it will ensure everybody is comfortable and it will give visitors a different experience every time they sit on a different level. The view from the table is also important. At the table every seat has a view of either the countryside to the North, the windows to the West or the sitting room to the East of the building. It will also have a ‘living’ wall to the right of the windows, this will

hopefully grow tomatoes and a variety of herbs.

High Stools

KitchenMoodboard

KitchenMaterials & Product Moodboard

Th e Sitting Room

Th e sitting room will be in the centre of the fi rst fl oor. Th ere will be a fi re place on one side, a book case oppersite and the windows to the adjoining side. Th e sofas will be bespoke. I have designed them in a way which will encourage conversaion as well as directing the visitors view to either the fi replace or the North facing windows. Th ere are two steps down into the sitting room area - this will help to defi ne the space and also it’ll lead to creating a more comforting, less naked, atmosphere. Th e sofas will bulge out of this lower level which will make the space feel comfortably cramped and it’ll reach out into the corridor area to invite people to come and sit down.Th e coff ee tables are made from the shape of each sofa in order for them to fi t the strange shapes - they will also be able to break off in

irregular sections making sure everybody can use one.

Bespoke Sofa and coff ee tables

Floating Fire Place

Th e Sitting Room

Sitting RoomMoodboard

Angular

Inside garden

Dark

LIGHT

The Sitting Room

This visual intended to show the view the user would have upon entering the building. The sitting room is very much the centre of the first floor wheras the itchen is alittle bit more private but is still clearly visable from the enterance.

Th e Garden & Courtyard

Th e garden and courtyard are the focus of the whole building. Th e walls that make the courtyard cut up through the fi rst fl oor creating a part divide in between the kitchen and the sitting room and creates a small corridor on either side of the building. Th e walls on the fi rst fl oor which make up the walls of the little corridors will have tiny, irregular window holes cut from them. Th e holes will provoke visitors to have a look and it will also allow light from the outside to illuminate the corridor

in an irregular and interesting way.

On the ground fl oor the garden will be situated in the centre of the courtyard - on either saide there will be ozersized sofa’s and 2 small ponds on each side.

Garden & CourtyardMoodboard

Idea

The architectural concept is defined by its situation. Frankfurt Airport is “pure Lufthansa”. It is an exceptionally well equipped location – but one that is also surrounded by noise and traffic. The aim was to create a communicative, healthy and interesting working atmosphere and also a landmark building that would be emblematic of Lufthansa. The emblematic feature of the Lufthansa Aviation Center is the roof, which is shaped rather like a paraglider. Beneath it

are nine gardens and ten office concourses.

Gardens

The gardens act as the lungs of the building and enable it to breathe. They provide a sense of calm in contrast to the traffic noise from outside. At the same time, they symbolise the earth’s vegetation and thus the openness and the

cosmopolitan outlook of the Lufthansa Group.

Ecology

The special technical features of the building can best be described by means of the gardens. They act like lungs, enabling the building to breathe. All staff members can open their windows and enjoy a breath of fresh, good-quality air. Moreover, the atriums and the gardens prevent the temperature from becoming

too hot or too cold.

Lufthansa Aviation Center

The Garden

The garden will contain a range of scented flowers to create a multi- sensory environment.

Such as: lavender, eucalyptus, hyacinths, lemongrass, cedarwood, honeysuckle, roses, elderflowers and orange blossom as these plants are all lovely and

colourful, rather reliable in terms of blooming and highly scented.

Draining the Courtyard and Garden

I realise that draining the garden will be a problem as it is inside the building but I have researched how the system could work.

First a serious of trenches will have to be dug beneath the garden which will then be lined with pipes which will connect to a ‘dry well’. The dry well will collect the excess water underground which will then be transported out of the building via a series of pipes. After researching this I found it would be a lot easier to actually do than first anticipated although it will involve digging down to the existing foundations in order to install the dry well and the piping.

The Garden & Courtyard

The Courtyard

This shows one side of the courtyard. I am a little disappointed that I couldn’t

find a way of showing how the void would go straight to the sky above but I wouldn’t have been able to show both

the courtyard and the void in one visual but hopefully this will be explained through the drawing of the section

Science Centre Berlin

I really like how Gnädinger Architekten have been able to make a space which is neither inside nor outside. The balcony/surround of the building is topped with a sort of lattice, allowing for a sense of shelter yet still open

to the elements.

Grensel Lights, London

These lights add a lovely sense of repitition and order also lower the ceiling height making the room cosy, warm and alot more homely. I’d like to use these kinds of lights in

the kitchen.

The ‘Ear Chair’

The ear chair is a practical solution for providing a ‘focus booth’ for private work as well as being a really interesting design to

look at.

Maggie’s Centre, Glasgow

This skylight really caught my eye. It gives a lovely sense of a small injection of light into what would otherwise be a rather dark space

‘White Brick House’, China

This house in china appears extremely simple at first glance yet it has been amazingly designed in terms of small details. Here a table branches from one room into another through a small gap in the walls. This

inspired the design of the kitchen.

Research

(Intrim Presentations Sheets)

Angular

Inside garden

Dark

LIGHT


MoodBoard

KITCHEN

TERRACE

SITTING ROOMWORK STATIONS

LIFT

MAINENTERANCE

First Floor

Workstations

The main entrance will open into the workstations. These workstations will be very casual and will consist of a large table for 12 people, a ‘focus’ booth for a private workspace and a series of flexible seats. Visitors will be encouraged to use these workstations as their own along side the staff as this will encourage casual conversation between the staff

and the visitors.

The Sitting Room

The sitting room will be in the centre of the first floor. There will be two small steps down into the sitting room as I want the space to be defined rather than being divided. The sofas will be bespoke - I have designed two oversized and irregular sofas which will encourage conversation and each seat offers the visitor either a view of the central fire place or the view of the North facing windows. There will be a bookshelf within the low partition behind the sofas and a

fire place oppersite.

The Kitchen

The kitchen will be behind the walls which make up the courtyard - there will be a corridor on either side allowing a small view of the kitchen from the rest of the space. The kitchen table will branch across three heights of seating

(highstools, normal chairs and floor seating)

The Entrance

The first floor will remain open plan. On approaching the building there will be an option to enter via the main entrance or to enter by walking through the terrace garden

- this will allow a peek into the building before entering.

First Floor Plans


MAINTREAMENT

ROOM

TREATMENT ROOMS

1 & 2

BATHROOMS

READING ROOM

GARDEN

COURTYARD

PONDS

Ground Floor

The Garden & Courtyard

The garden will be in the centre of the courtyard, the walls will continue through the ceiling and be open to the elements. The decking of the courtyard will lead over two small ponds on either side and to a large bench. The lighting in the covered area of the courtyard will be rather dim allowing the beam of light from the void above to be a

real feature of the space

Treatment Rooms

The main treatment room will be on the other side of the garden and courtyard. I wanted it to be like this to ensure that each visitor, if attending a meeting will defiantly have to walk not only through the courtyard but around the garden too. I wanted the staircase to lead to the ground floor in the centre of the building as to give a clear view of the situation of all the rooms. I don’t want anyone to feel lost or unsettled. A clear and uncomplicated layout is

essential to the centre.

The Reading Room

The reading room will be a quiet and private space with only bookshelves, a coffee table and a sofa which will be

more than large enough to lie down on.

The Bathrooms

There will be two bathrooms. Each will be approximately 8 square metres in area. There will be a small bookshelf and comfortable chair outside the bathrooms which is intended

to be a waiting space/ quiet reading area.

Ground Floor Plans


MAINTREAMENT

ROOM

TREATMENTROOMS

2&3

KITCHENVOID

GARDEN&

COURTYARD

SITTINGROOM

WORKSTATIONS

MAINTREAMENT

ROOM

KITCHEN

LIVING WALLTABLE

Elevations


The Kitchen


Initial Ideas

Th e Stairs

Th e stair case will be in a V shape with a landing in the centre. Two sets of stairs will lead down from the fi rst level allowing access from either side of the building. Th e two staircases will meet in the centre on a landing level which will be a 1.5 x 1.5m wide square - this will provide an adequate break in the stair according to public stair building regulations. From the landing will then be a single set of stairs leading down into the centre of the building. I wanted the stairs to particularly present the users with a clear view of the lower levels layout before actually entering as it could be rather daunting on their fi rst visit. I also decided this style of staircase would sit well in the building as I think V staircases can be rather empowering because of the way they join in the centre

aft er coming from oppersite angles.

Lighting

How can the design make the most of the available natural light? The building has been designed around the existing expanse of windows of the

North/East facing facade.

What role do the windows play in the use of light? The existing windows will remain apart from a few adjustments will be made in order to remove abit of the frame work, at the moment the window frames are extremely linear. They distract and

almost ruin the views.

How does the use of interior architecture control the amount of light able to penetrate the interior? The walls of the courtyard which extend through to the first floor will shield the interior from light in some places yet the small holes will allow light from the open air courtyard to seep through to illuminate

the corridor behind it.

How does the function of the interior dictate the ability to use light? The first floor will be very light as it will be open plan - there will be areas of more concentrated light due to lighting to dictated certain spaces within the building as an implied room whereas the down stairs will rely mainly

on natural light produced by the windowed facade.

How can shadow and shade be used? The extended courtyard walls on the first floor will be the only real area where shadow and shade play an integral part in the scheme of the building - here light will be blocked and allowed to penetrate different areas of the room during different times of day e.g. The kitchen will be lit most in the

afternoon.

What effect will the colour of the lighting have on the mood of the space? Most of the lighting used within the building, both on the ground and first floors will either be white (floor strip lights) or they will have a slight orange tinge to them in order to create a warming, comforting

atmosphere.

How do sunlight and daylight differ in relation to the affect within the interior? The windows on the North Facade will not get the sun during most of the day meaning that there is no need for shutters or light deflecting sun shades.

How do natural and man-made light differ within the interior? The natural light will dominate the ability

to illuminate the building during the day, in the evening the building will rely on man made light. I think this is good as it will create a warm cosy atmosphere in the evening and a light, airy atmosphere

during the day.

How will the users react to the use of light? Hopefully they will enjoy that the upstairs is a very light and open space which is good for the offices and kitchen but the ground floor will provide a more sheltered environment in which they can escape the light of day if they would like to, this is important as many of the users will look rather unwell and will want a kinder, darker light to relax

in.

What is the difference between the background lighting and the ‘task’ lighting? The back ground lighting will be at a minimum as the building is very large and by using task lighting to illuminate certain areas this will make the building feel less large and empty. Task lighting will also guide users to the communal areas and encourage them to use areas that are individually lit such as the office areas and the

kitchen.

Lighting Plan(First fl oor)

Th e partition and sofas will be surrounded in fl oor lighting strips which will enhance the shape of them and create a nice lowly lit atmosphere

Th e large copper lights in the kitchen will hang at two diff erent heights - the light will be slightly orange creating a

warm and cosy atmosphere

Small spotlights which will be fl ush to the fl oor of the terrace will light the route into the building when its dark, they will also enable the terrace to be used in the evening. Th e plants will look lovely from within the building instead of being completely dark

outside the large window

Th ree lights will hang rather lowly from above the communal offi ce table - this will attract people to the space as well as defi ning the space by using lighting. Th ere will also be a low hanging light on the landing of the stairs to make the stairs visable during

times when the light level is low

Lighting Plan(Ground fl oor)

Mirroring the use of strip fl oor lighting on the fi rst fl oor, these strip lights will run along side the low

partitioning walls

Spot lights will be fl ush to the ceiling running around the courtyard area so the area can still be the feature of

the space when its dark

Th ere will be three fl ush lights in the toilets lighting the back wall as I want the toilets to remain rather dark to create a comfortable atmosphere. Th ere will be a larger hanging light to illuminate the corridor/waiting area and another to light the reading chair

In the main treatment room I wanted it to be lit naturally in the day and a single source of light in times when the light levels are low as I want the room to be mainly dependent on candles from lighting in order to make the space relaxing

Acoustics

Acoustics are very important within Maggie’s Centres as the space should remain calm and relaxing and this can be enhanced by minimising the amount of sound

within the building.

The openness of first floor will create a problem with sound management as the majority of the walls are made from white brick or smooth plastered surfaces which creates a loud, echoy atmosphere which will make the building feel huge, unwelcoming, anti-social and confusing - the oppersite of how it should be if its going to be successful as a function design. Therefore I have given some thought about how I can construct an adequate solution to this problem. The sitting room will have an acoustic panel suspended above it, mirroring the size and shape of the drop-down level which defines the room. The walls of the courtyard which extend through the first floor will be treated acoustically from within (Acoustic Panelling by Pacy & Wheatley which is a thick acoustic mineral fibreboard which will then be coated in ‘EcoLife® Ambient Finish coat’ which is a spray on plaster). Also the two large sofas in the sitting room will help to

absorb a lot of the sound.

The ground floor will be less of a problem when it comes to noise pollution. The space is a lot more divided therefore sound will struggle to resinate. But the treatment rooms, more than any other space, need to be soundproof let alone acoustically treated therefore I have found a material used in music studios which will eliminate any noise from the spaces. (Acoustics Spectrum Studio Tile

50 Nat by EQ)

What do you think people need from a cancer centre?A space which is inviting, homely, cosy, inspiring and not patronising.

Does your design meet the needs?It provides a casual and private offices spaces, the first floor is open plan yet the spaces are defined by changes in floor level, the use of ceiling panels and low partitions. The room is partially split by the walls of the courtyard. The down stairs is arranged around the central courtyard which is the integral part of my

design.

The relationship between the inside and outside spaces:The courtyard and garden are positioned in the centre of the lower level. The walls which make up the courtyard on the first floor have tiny peep holes in it to allow light to seep through into the corridor and to allow a little view of the garden below

to passer bys.

The role/ use of any outdoor spaces/interior gardens or courtyards:The terrace on the first floor allows visitors not by-pass the main entrance and into the terrace garden to the right of the entrance - this allows people to have a peek through the window and also it will set the tone of the building, helping them to

decide weather to entre the building or not.

The role of the entrance; have you thought about ways to soften this threshold:On approaching the building there will be an option to enter the building not through the main entrance - they will be able to enter via the terrace on the first

floor - this makes entering the building a lot less intimidating.

Are there any ‘staging posts’ to help people negotiate the building once they are inside?

The first floor is open plan, the kitchen is slightly sheltered by the walls making up the courtyard but is still clearly visible. Each space is defined by low partitions,

changes in ceiling or floor height or by clusters of furniture

Access and movement between the different spaces and levels:There is a lift close to the entrance and a stair case on the left as you enter - the stair case has two sets of stairs on the top floor which merge into one on the second

floor.

Access - have you made your design accessible and welcoming to all your users? (This might include young families, older people in wheelchairs etc.)

There will be a lift between the ground floor and the first floor, the sitting room will have a small ramp on one side and one step on the other. The kitchen seating area

will have a portable ramp which will slide from within the seating block

Views of the landscape from within building, views/sight lines through the building, views looking into the building:

There will be no windows at all on the hospital facing facades. The existing windows will be retained on the opppersite side and there will be large windows on wither

short section of the building.

The impact of natural light through the day and seasonal change on the inside and outside spaces:

The interior garden will hopefully be able to keep a good temperature all year round due to its position in the centre of the building therefore the garden will continuously be in flower but obviously according to the seasons. The light will filter through the building - through the holes in the courtyard walls as it is open to the sky. The kitchen will get the late afternoon sun and the offices will get most

sun in the morning which is the best way round.

If you have included plants/garden areas please consider/research the practicalness, health and safety and maintenance issues:

Plumbing - Planting -

The impact of your design on all the senses:The interior has been designed with all senses in mind. The symmetry of the building id visually pleasing as well as giving the user a clear sense of navigation. The open plan first floor is designed to carry the scent of the wood burning stove throughout the building as well as the cooking taking place in the open plan kitchen. The materials will be natural and high in texture, the uneven white brick and the wood down stairs will be contrasted against the smooth walls of the courtyard. The ponds and the garden in the courtyard will encourage a continuously changing

interactive experience.

The impact sound might have within the different spaces:The first floor will be rather loud as it is all open plan but the lowered accustic panel in the sitting room along with a th etwo ozer-sized sofas will help to keep noise to a mimum. The kitchen will be partly divided by the walls of the courtyard therefore tackling the problem of noise resinating from the kitchen which could have eben a big problem considering how loud kitchens can be. On the ground floor accoustics wont be a probelm as the majority of the space will be divided

using accoustically treated walls.

Final Presentation

Maggie's FalmouthMaggie’s centres are situated across the UK, their purpose is to offer a place where cancer sufferers and their families can go and chat, take classes and undergo therapy. The building needs to be

inviting, inspiring but not intimidating.

The concept behind the design is based on the idea that gardens aid the healing process weather it is physical or psychological healing. The open air courtyard and garden will be situated in the centre of the building allowing every treatment room to have a clear view of the garden. The first floor of the building is designed to be three communal areas - the kitchen, sitting room and offices. The ground floor will provide private reading areas, a small rest room, the garden and

courtyard, toilets and the three main treatment rooms.

Response to Final Presentation Feedback

Angie seemed to really like the design of the kitchen table as it is a simple necessity within our homes yet in Maggie’s Centres it is a key aspects in terms of encouraging socialising. She referred to it as being a ‘3rd type of space’ as Charles Keswick describes Maggie’s Centres - nor domestic nor public spaces, they are their own

type of space.

She liked the different view points and angular walls, she said it gave the centre a contemporary feel which reminded her of Zahah Hadid’s style of architecture within the Fife Maggie’s. She also said the design was motivating which is great as I wanted the design, above all, to be hopeful, interesting, inspiring, mature and not

at all patronising which I think it achieves.

In terms of the presentation itself, David suggested that the rendered section could be improved by adding some architectural detailing to the roof which I totally agree with as my design does intrude on the existing roof structure so it would be good to display the new design and its relationship with the existing roof structure.

air sketchbook

Documents

existing building

study health care

study health clinics

study rolex learning

study berlin science

study retirement home

maggies falmouthbrief

duke integrative medicine