Description

There was a time when the life of the Celtic villages circled around a formidable tree, the tree which gave life. The druids believed that this tree connected life and death and it was represented by its branches connected to the roots. It attributed the healing properties to the most valuable trees and used nature within its reach to carry out medicines and poisons. I do not believe in coincidences but if one is attentive ... they appear to be the connecting points: Galicia - Celtas - Tree - Druids - Doctors - Hospital. When we started designing this building, we decided to start over. How would a patient like his experience in a hospital? What would be the ideal spaces for the workers? How could we take advantage of the potential of the location and sun movements? The location is privileged; elevated and dominant with views. The contact with nature is healing and it improves the mood and quality of life of the patient which was not understood by the druids. Our project opens to nature, searching for its benefits in a rational and organic way by the best orientations and spaces of the site.

Another challenge posed by the project is its integration with the preexisting building. Our intention is to complete it, adapt it, grow from it and integrate it with the new building to form a whole. The dendroid plant form is the result of the analysis of the needs of the building and to open it to nature, the exterior part of the building and its gestures, it is an element that has grown with the same principles as the roots and trunk of the tree looking for light, thus grew magic Celtic tree that connects life and death. 

It is in our hands to change what seems unchangeable. It is in our hands to orient our work and effort in building a hospital of the future, a hospital that is not a dark impersonal box, that allows us to recover, a trip to nature in search of health and encouragement, a place which facilitates people to work in contact with the environment that comforts us. 

We are sure that with teamwork, listening to the proposals of the citizens and the health team, with humility, we will achieve an exceptional hospital building. We can build our own “Arbore da vida”.

Description

It is very difficult to continue the work of another architect. It is a game of discovering the associations and scale of priorities carried out in his work. The case of the hospital in question is a clear example of rational and functional architecture, with a dominant communications axis that articulates the entire building. 

Our architectural and functional research began with the firm desire to ensure that our project would be a natural continuation of the of the generating scheme of the pre-existing building. We did not want to to make an extension by filling in the existing space, nor a foreign element to the alien to the pre-existing. In this way, we let the backbone grow and let its layout and development define the geometry of the building. 

The project has been designed to resolve the programme, but also to try to improve some aspects of the existing building by providing it with a noble access, in keeping with the function it performs. This access is accessible from the largest parking area of the hospital, helping to redirect access to the rear of the building. 

Our proposal includes a study of the structure, modulated to optimise the spaces and the ease of execution of the proposal, as well as the use of prefabricated materials and construction elements to achieve maximum speed and minimum maintenance in the future. Our studio was a pioneer in the development of prefabricated bathrooms and in the use of techniques such as prefabricated load-bearing façades, achieving reductions of up to 20% in our works. As a studio, we are fully committed to sustainability. 

Our buildings always include a detailed study of the environmental impact of our activities and designs. We have carried out projects with Leed, Breeam and PH certifications and we apply the premises by default, convinced that our work as technicians involves an important responsibility given the scope of the actions in which we participate. 

The durability of the materials chosen, the reliability of the construction systems used and the cleanliness and simplicity of our geometry make this building an element designed for optimum FM.