What is the role of architects and designers in fostering wellness? Cubes 93 casts an eye over healthcare design as well as the pursuit of wellness in hospitality, the workplace, and community facilities.
Cubes Issue 93: Designing Well(ness). On the cover is the Jungle Station by G8A Architecture & Planning. Photo by Tran Nhat Quang, courtesy of G8A
Jungle Station by G8A Architecture & Planning. Photo by Tran Nhat Quang, courtesy of G8A)
Ethnobotany Garden at Singapore Botanic Gardens by Zarch Collaboratives and Land Design One. Photo courtesy of Zarch Collaboratives
David Schafer and the crew of Studiomake. Portrait by Adit Sombunsa
Brick Cave by H&P Architects. Photo by Nguyen Tien Thanh, courtesy of H&P Architects
University Sports Centre. NUS by Forum Architects. Photo by Derek Swalwell, courtesy of Forum Architects
Is Singapore Ageing Well? A conversation with Janice Chia, Dr Chong Keng Hua, Kang Fong Ing and Dr Wong Sweet Fun. Portrait by Justin Loh
Khong Guan Limited by Meta Architecture and Lua Architects Associates. Photo by Darren Soh
White Jacket studio founder Patricia Ho. Portrait by Justin Loh
Heartbeat@Bedok by Ong&Ong. Photo courtesy of ONG&ONG
2 October, 2018
Wellness appears in front of us as an ideal we can seek through innumerable services and products, and as something we need to hold ourselves accountable for.
But as we are increasingly able to assert, thanks to tools such as the WELL Building Standard and research being done in healthcare environments, our wellness is also influenced by our built environment.
So what is the role of the architect or designer in fostering it? How can we define it? How accountable should our industry be for creating the conditions for wellness – both physical and mental? And how is the race for wellness changing the spectrum of sectors in which we work?
This issue we dutifully cast an eye over the healthcare sector and its careful pivot away from sterile monotony toward more restorative, greenery-connected spaces.
Alongside that shift, we also find a decentralisation occurring, with an array of smaller healthcare hubs on the horizon that will enjoy greater connection to the communities around them.
But we also look at how the pursuit of wellness is impacting hospitality, the workplace, and community facilities in direct and indirect ways.
Wellness was one of four new categories introduced to the INDE.Awards in 2018, and in 2019 we look forward to seeing more of how our region is addressing the pursuit of a healthy state of being.
Entries to the INDE.Awards 2019 will be opening soon for the next chapter in the Indo-Pacific region’s design story. Keep an eye on indeawards.com and indesignlive.sg, and join us once again in the INDEs regional conversation.
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