Edward Powe

Do historic symbols and spatial principles still have relevance in the design of contemporary health care interiors?

Historic facades adorn hospitals throughout London, but the relationship between these two aesthetics is strange. The Classical style is loaded with meaning, from its supposed symbolic origin as a site for the ancient Greek ritual of sacrifice, to ideologies portrayed in its representation. These meanings raise questions about its relevance in relationship to an emotionally charges program of care. It is through a study of the historic facades which adorn London Hospitals that the relevance of these meanings can be explored, and a richer medical interior aesthetic tested.

This project analyses the symbolic and spatial meaning hidden in the retained historic façade of the new Pathology Wing of St Bartholomew’s Hospital. The relevance of the reappropriation of these historic meanings is then questioned through the speculative design of a series of ideological hospital interiors.