PROJECT REPORT: HEALTHCARE BUILDINGS
conversation with family members. Trees on the landscaped terraces outside dapple the light falling into the interiors, and users can feel the breeze internally thanks to opening windows.
Lighting is an important part of the soothing ambience of the interior, with LEDs integrated into the exteriors of the timber pods, allowing the warm tones of the material to glow without the light source being fully visible. The luminaires are integrated into timber shelves and window sills, the shelving cleverly placed between the vertical ribs and along the floor-to-ceiling windows. This provides more storage space for books as well as for personal artworks to make the interiors feel more homely. Outside, the lighting is directed onto the trees, which projects shadows of leaves into the interior once the sun goes down. Tenorio says that the designers “almost had to work backwards, to specify how the lights would be integrated at an early stage, as the building was still taking shape when the lighting design came on board”. They worked closely with lighting consultant Light Bureau as the lighting positions dictated some of the shelves’ locations. The shelves also provide a key location internally for some of the many planters that make it an unusually verdant healthcare interior. Tumbling out of their containers (which echo the overall form), the plants enhance both walls and stairs and imbue something of a feeling of a timber conservatory to the common spaces. “We wanted the plants to be the heroes” Tenorio commented. With Thomas Heatherwick having come from the world of furniture design, it’s no surprise that key pieces here are designed by his studio. The practice designed two tables inspired by the building’s timber fins and built, by Temper Studio, from cork and engineered beech timber, which sit in the ‘heart space.’ The kitchen table is an important social centrepiece of every Maggie’s Centre, and here, the table’s ribbed timber legs provide another tie-in with the overall structure. Heatherwick Studio was also responsible for the interior design, and worked with furniture consultant Coexistence to find other pieces that fitted within the architects’ vision.
The focus on natural materials is perhaps most evident in the upholstery, chairs and tables, as well as the substantial wool curtains. Such products’ tactile qualities are “often missed in healing environments,” says Tenorio. Natural finishes used include porous lime plaster, aiding internal humidity.
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