I am drawn to the idea that Architects have the power to adjust the mood, and in turn health, of a person who experiences a controlled space. It is already known that certain colors can make people hungry (example : yellow, McDonald's). Smells can bring forth memories from the past (baked cookies, home). This can also work in Hospital environments.
In 1929, Alvar Aalto designed Paimio Sanatorium for the Tuberculosis Outbreak in Finland. Each detail of the building is created with the intention of healing the patients, and creating a sense of community. Since doctors prescribed sunshine as a treatment for the illness, Aalto made sure to situate the patient rooms to face southward. The many common rooms (group settings) were placed near the treatment rooms so that patients had ample time to create connections with each other. Aalto did not use technology as the basis of his design, but as a piece of a dialogue that the human has with his surroundings. Emphasis is made on the connections between the different wings, both by color and spatial changes. He designed each piece of furniture and detailing with great care, including a splashless, quiet sink which was placed on each side of the patient rooms. This building is successful in many ways, which is apparent in the fact that it is still used today.
WHY IS THIS INTERESTING? A buzzword in Healthcare design these days is "healing", but I believe it is overused. Building according to code doesn't create a "healing" environment. The Paimio Sanitorium could be written on a Doctor's prescription because the building itself becomes a part of the patient's treatment. It becomes more than a space where the doctor can do their work, but the building becomes a doctor in itself.
That last part about a building being a prescription is a very intriguing concept... would we create buildings to help heal certain diseases, or can a typical building type (like lots of sunshine) be healing-ful for all illnesses?
ReplyDeleteNellie for this to be truly useful as a precedent I think you have to go two more layers deeper. First layer you need to push your the question is the sanitorium successful just because it faces South or is it about a sequence of spaces. Is it the details or is there something in the sectional qualities of the building that make connections to healing. The second step would be to document - what those elements are that you think are important, take them apart, understand how they work and how they can work outside the specific context of Aalto's designs.
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