• It competed along with ten other shortlisted projects in the Completed Buildings Health category.
• This Clinic won a WAF Award in 2013 in the Future Projects Health category.
• Another project by the firm has been a WAF finalist: AGi architects’ competition entry for the new Qatar Courthouse.
• This Honorable Mention is added to the four WAF awards won so far by AGi architects, the latest one obtained last year in the Completed Buildings Religion category with “La Ascensión del Señor” Church, in Seville, Spain.

Madrid, 10th November 2015. The international design firm AGi architects led by Joaquin Perez-Goicoechea and Nasser Abulhasan was honored by the World Architecture Festival (WAF) in its latest edition hosted in Singapore.

The project Ali Mohammed T. Al-Ghanim Clinic was “Highly Commended” after competing for the WAF Award 2015 in the Completed Buildings Health category, with a total of eleven shortlisted projects. This Clinic by AGi architects was already awarded by the World Architecture Festival in 2013, when it was the winner of the Future Projects Health category, and the work was at the initial design and realization stages.

Another project by the firm reached the finalist stage. It was the AGi architects’ proposal submitted to the restricted competition organized by the Qatar government in late 2014 -and which won the second prize of this competition- for the new Qatar Courthouse in Doha city. This work competed for the WAF award in the Future Projects Competition Entries category, along with eight other shortlisted projects.

According to Joaquin Perez-Goicoechea, partner and co-founder of the firm and WAF Awards’ Judge at this edition, in the Completed Building Religion and Future Projects Culture categories, “it is always a great pleasure to have the recognition and professional support to our work. Regarding the Clinic, having achieved a WAF award in 2013, at the initial design phase, and now an Honorable Mention once the project is built, is the perfect finishing touch for the whole team of AGi architects."

Ali Mohammed T. Al-Ghanim Clinic

Ali Mohammed T. Al-Ghanim Clinic by AGi architects stands as a pioneer in the healthcare sector, where challenging issues such as privacy and security are addressed using a new model, where courtyards attached to the façade are the driving element behind this unique typology. 

The program occupies the entirety of the site, and from afar the building is viewed as a monolithic element solidifying its ground and creating a high walled fortress protecting from vandalism and maximizing privacy. The courtyards are carved into the building, allowing for natural light into all the clinics. The concept of the façade generating light, views and ventilation is reversed; and the courtyards are brought inwards from the perimeter creating further privacy. Examination rooms have been located towards the closed outer façade and opened to the interior courtyards in which common space flows.

A contemporary mesh that connects to the cultural identity of end users was created. An anodized and perforated metal sheet allows sufficient light to enter, constructing a veiled threshold in between exterior and internal courtyards.

Upon entering the clinic, a colorful ceramic mosaic welcomes patients. This range of colors will go with visitors during their stay at the clinic, identifying counters of each medical specialty with different colors included in the mosaic.

Due to the density and variety of the program presented in this clinic, the spaces are sectioned off into multiple self-sufficient departments, which can operate independently from one another. Internal circulation is organized in a fluid way, conceiving space as a succession of linked rooms and public areas, avoiding as much as possible the typical corridor scheme of hospital typology.

World Architecture Festival

El World Architecture Festival es el principal festival y concurso dedicado a celebrar y compartir la excelencia arquitectónica en todo el mundo, con el foco de atención puesto en el debate, aprendizaje e inspiración. El jurado principal de este año ha estado formado por Sir Peter Cook, Sou Fujimoto, Kerry Hill y Manuelle Gautrand. La actual edición del Festival se está celebrando en Singapur, del 4 al 6 de noviembre.

El Festival ha ampliado este año sus fronteras y estará también presente en Dubai del 10 al 11 de febrero de 2016, tras haber expuesto los proyectos finalistas de esta edición en Londres en el mes de junio, durante el Festival de Arquitectura de Londres.

World Architecture Festival is the world’s largest festival and live awards competition dedicated to celebrating and sharing architectural excellence from across the globe. This year’s ‘super jury’ included professionals such as Sir Peter Cook, Sou Fujimoto, Kerry Hill and Manuelle Gautrand. The 2015 festival was held in Singapore for the fourth time, taking place between 4-6 November.

This edition of the Festival is also present in Dubai from 10 to 11 February 2016 and was in London from 24 to 27 June, during the London Festival of Architecture, exhibiting the WAF 2015 finalists.