Thesis

Urban Hospice: Urban Serenity, questions how nature can be integrated into and with the architectural construct, to establish new realms of care and well-being for urban dwellers, while intentionally avoiding urban attention and reducing the perception of density, as a modal tool, in achieving urban serenity in central Shanghai.

Hypothesis

According to the Shanghai Municipal Health Bureau, 36,000 people a year, die of cancer in Shanghai, with 70 percent of terminally ill cancer patients in need of hospice care. Studies have shown a direct correlation between the urban conditions of Shanghai and the growing rate of the city’s cancer deaths. As a result, Shanghai’s government have initiated a pilot program to provide hospice palliative care wards in community health service centres across Shanghai’s districts. Shanghai’s proactive approach towards palliative care along with the high density of Huangpu1 (district of Dongjiadu) gives potential for experimenting in Dongjiadu, with the provision of high-density hospice care. Prioritising the needs of a contemporary Chinese hospice in balance and in contrast to the affects of high density urban living – as a means to achieve urban serenity – is both the challenge and the goal.

Methodology

Urban Scale – The programme of a hospice, provides many of the same ingredients present in the residential programme. Some are even of greater importance such as the need for privacy, comfort and familiarity. As a result the hospice will exist in the master plan as a component of a residential urban environment and provide an urban network between itself and the other relative amenities of care within the master plan.

Building Scale – The projects residential components makes the application of the slab typology a rational and logical building envelope to approaching the design of the residential elements. However, with the integration of landscape and the extent of the hospiceʼs service supporting facilities, the slab block design will be multiplied to create an alternative typological form and help enhance the roles supporting services. By also aiming to avoid urban attention the envelopeʼs facade will act as a tool to camouflage the building, from attracting overcrowding.

Individual Scale – It is vital that the intimate experience of the patient is not compromised. Consequently the envelope will incorporate user controlled facilities to ensure their control of their privacy. Rooms and facilities will also be at human scale, to remove the daunting affect of high density, at the end of an individuals life. Where the scale is compromisingly vast, nature and landscape will be used to help reduce the scale.

Effectual Moment – Ironically, the ʻEffectual Momentʼ will not cater to the cancer patients but, rather be a detoxing experience, that will work to provide visitors and the eventually bereaved with the zenith ʻmomentʼ of serenity. A series of courtyards/light-wells, that run throughout the building joined at unique point to create variation for this specific user in the building experience.

Design Criteria

A palette of serenity has been devised to establish what the project and the achievement of urban serenity must be measured against. The palette includes, the following elements: water as a feature; landscape and greenery; the sound of the city but only a glimpse of the city.

Expected Outcome

Potentially, the proposed outcome should provide a catalyst for a new typology of care and accommodation within the dense urban fabric. Additionally it should hope to provide a juxtaposition between the serene environment and itʼs surrounding urban context and eventually make it not only an environment of privacy and tranquility for itʼs intended end-users, but also a place of tranquility and retreat for urbanists who are aware of it.