OMA: construction for maggie's centre gartnavel starts

construction began today on OMA‘s ‘maggie’s centre gartnavel’, a facility providing emotional and practical support for people living with cancer, their families and friends. located in glasgow, scotland, the project is one of several maggie’s centres in the UK and part of a pioneering project which aims to use sensitive architecture and spaces as tools for solace and healing.

‘we accepted the commission with eagerness. I don’t think it should be a building that challenges people to live better, rather it should have a direct effect on the people who use it. the space we have is great because it is linked to the existing hospital, but far enough away from it for us to create another world. it has both privacy and a central position; both sheltered and slightly exposed. the centre will have a holistic feel and hopefully will provide respite and comfort for people.’ — rem koolhaas

all images courtesy of OMA

the single-level, 534 sqm building is a ring of interlocking spaces with subtly shifting floor levels that respond to the natural topography of the site. rooms vary in height with the more intimate areas programmed for personal uses such as counseling, and more open and spacious zones providing areas to gather and create a sense of community. to be seen like a pavilion in the woods, the building is both introverted and extroverted: each space has a relationship either to the internal courtyard or to the surrounding woods and greenery.

the project, led by partners-in-charge rem koolhaas and ellen van loon, and associate-in-charge richard hollington, will be completed in summer 2011. founded by maggie keswick jencks and charles jencks, the maggie’s cancer caring centres foundation opened the first maggie’s centre in edinburgh in 1996, and has since commissioned a series of innovative buildings designed by world class architects.