Integrated Wellness Center: An Urban Topography

March 2019

The design goal of the integrated wellness center is to create a space that works as an antidote to the often cold and alienating urban landscape. Using the visual language of topography, flipped 90 degrees to reflect the verticality of urbanism, the space does not completely reject the architecture of the surrounding city, but reforms it in a way to create a more calming and comfortable experience for the patient. Layered narrow vertical forms unify tow levels of the space into one continuous landscape. Specific separations in the vertical forms, as well as the incorporation of various opacities of glass allow natural light to permeate its entirety while maintaining consistent privacy for the various programs of the center. With a center focussing on depression, it is essential that the space is inviting. Taking cues from the experience of leaving the subway and entering the more pleasant street, the lobby of the center hopes to lift a new state of mind. By creating a transportive liminal space, the design aims to distance the patient from the grievances of their life.

The above Images show models which depict the various settings for the feeling of isolation, from which the design language of the space was developed.

Experiential Model Photos

Experiential Interior Sketches