Production at Proto Studios. Image: Christopher TippingProduction at Proto Studios. Image: Christopher Tipping
Work is now in progress at the brilliant Proto Glass Studios on the first stage of screen printing ceramic colour for of the NORTH SCREEN. We are collaborating with Proto Studios, specialist Architectural Glass Decorators on the production of 46sqm of screen printed, sandblasted & etched architectural glass screens for the new Hydrotherapy Pool & Therapies Unit for the RUH and RNHRD in Bath commissioned by Art at the Heart. The artwork is presented as an abstracted landscape running over both the North & the East Screens of the Pool Room – a way of encapsulating all disparate elements that have inspired my work into something engaging for the viewer, which will changes throughout the day in response to levels of daylight and direct sun.
Both the RUH & RNHRD Hospital sites were originally set in, and adjacent to open fields and expansive views of countryside. Easy to imagine then how beneficial this must have been to those patients and staff who experienced this.
It is now commonly understood that exposure to natural spaces, planting and nature within medical and healing environments is of great benefit and assists in the recovery and positive experience of patients and staff alike .
This landscape is populated with recognisable motifs, such as flowers, deer and trees, woven together with abstracted forms and simple repeating patterns. Local landmarks such as Kelston Round Hill also feature, as do references to the architectural decoration and built heritage of The Min and its archaic Roman Mosaics. However, the most visible motif perhaps is water, and more explicitly, the gestural movement of water as shaped by those taking treatment in the Hydrotherapy Pool. A shape made in water informed by the movement of a hand or leg. Abstractions of steam or mist appear to hover in this landscape. Water is contained within a bowl or pool. An elegant but dynamic abstract splash of water drifts across the whole of the East Screen. The connection to hot springs and flowing waters has shaped Bath into the World Heritage Site we see today.
Production at Proto Studios. Image: Christopher TippingProduction at Proto Studios. Image: Christopher TippingProduction at Proto Studios. Image: Christopher TippingProduction at Proto Studios. Image: Christopher TippingProduction at Proto Studios. Image: Christopher TippingProduction at Proto Studios. Image: Christopher TippingProduction at Proto Studios. Image: Christopher TippingProduction at Proto Studios. Image: Christopher TippingProduction at Proto Studios. Image: Christopher TippingProduction at Proto Studios. Image: Christopher TippingProduction at Proto Studios. Image: Christopher TippingProduction at Proto Studios. Image: Christopher TippingProduction at Proto Studios. Image: Christopher TippingProduction at Proto Studios. Image: Christopher Tipping
I imagined an abstracted landscape as a positive way of encapsulating all that has inspired my commission for the Hydrotherapy Pool glazed screens. (There are approximately 46sqm of glass combined in both screens).
Both Hospital sites were originally set in and adjacent to open fields and expansive views of countryside. Easy to imagine then how beneficial this must have been to those patients and staff who experienced this.
It is now commonly understood that exposure to natural spaces, planting and nature within medical and healing environments is of great benefit and assists in the recovery and positive experience of patients and staff alike.
Deer with Roman pattern. Research Images developing patterns from research at the RNHRD, including The Min Chapel. Artist: Christopher Tipping
This glass landscape is populated with recognisable motifs, such as flowers, deer and trees, woven together with abstract forms and repeating patterns. Local landmarks such asKelston Round Hillalso feature, as do references to the architectural decoration and built heritage of The Minand its archaic Roman Mosaics. However, the most visible motif perhaps is water, and more explicitly, the gestural movement of water as shaped by those taking treatment in the Hydrotherapy Pool. A shape made in water informed by the movement of a hand or leg. Abstractions of steam or mist appear to hover in this landscape. Water is contained within a bowl or pool. An elegant but dynamic abstract splash of water drifts across the whole of the East Screen. The connection to hot springs and flowing waters has shaped Bath into the World Heritage Site we see today.
I have been so impressed with the positivity and care of the medical staff delivering these services, I wanted to evoke this caring nature with visual clues within the work, which may express this. Growing flowers and creating gardens is a nurturing vocation. Water is an elemental part of this. Historically, The Min was built upon the grounds of the first Theatre in Bath, and the later extension built upon the formal gardens of Rectory House. Adjacent to the ChapeI at the rear of The Min is a small but lovely garden. Also in Bath, Gibbes Garden was a 15th Century apothecary garden growing medicinal herbs.
Combe Park had formerly been the site of the Bath War Hospital built in 1916 to provide beds and medical services for WW1 Casualties. There was a small pond and a stream ran nearby. Patients and staff were encouraged to grow and maintain flower gardens & were rewarded with prizes.
I was offered a session at the Hydrotherapy Pool at The Min as a way of understanding a little more about the impact of water as a treatment. I am not a patient – I cannot experience this as many do on a daily basis, not I am I in the process of healing or tempering acute conditions. Patients vary from those with lifelong conditions, such as Ankylosing spondylitis and others suffering from chronic pain, to physiotherapy in the pool following operations or broken limbs. All I can aim for is to add to the interior space with something visually interesting / beautiful / stimulating to this brand-new environment, which makes the experience for both staff and patients a pleasant and perhaps an intriguing one.
The following images make up the final draft artwork approved for production by the RUH. The Magenta/Pink colour is used to indicate clear/fully transparent glazing with no artwork. White represents sandblasting and / or Ceramic Etch techniques. All other colour is created using Screen-printed Ceramic Colour fired onto the glass. The artwork is applied to the two inner faces of a double glazed sealed unit. There is a subtle overlaying of motifs, which means that the artwork is slightly different as seen from the interior, than the exterior. These drafts are created initially via hand drawing and assembled and finished in Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator.
Final Master Draft for the North and East Glazed Screens. Artist: Christopher TippingResearch Images developing patterns from research at the RNHRD, including The Min Chapel. Artist: Christopher TippingResearch Images developing colour & patterns from research at the RNHRD, including The Min Chapel. Artist: Christopher TippingFinal Master Draft for the East Glazed Screen. Artist: Christopher TippingFinal Master Draft for the East Glazed Screen detail 4. Artist: Christopher TippingFinal Master Draft for the East Glazed Screen detail 3. Artist: Christopher TippingIris drawing. Research drawings developing motifs and patterns from research at the RNHRD, including The Min Chapel. Artist: Christopher TippingFinal Master Draft for the East Glazed Screen detail 2. Artist: Christopher TippingDraft Donkey with pattern. Research Images developing motifs & patterns from research at the RNHRD, including The Min Chapel. Artist: Christopher TippingOrange. Research Images developing motifs, patterns & colours from research at the RNHRD, including The Min Chapel. Artist: Christopher TippingFinal Master Draft for the North Glazed Screen detail 1. Artist: Christopher TippingFinal Master Draft for the North Glazed Screen detail 2. Artist: Christopher TippingFinal Master Draft for the North Glazed Screen detail 3. Artist: Christopher TippingDraft 16 Foil shape with Foxgloves. Research drawings developing motifs & patterns from research at the RNHRD, including The Min Chapel. Artist: Christopher Tipping
I was commissioned by Guy Topping MD of Barton Grange Garden Centre to create the cnc routed artwork for the external Rockpanel rainscreen facade.
The Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of RockpanelThe Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of Rockpanel
Rockpanel put me in touch with Barton Grange following our work with HLM Architects on their ‘Heart of the Campus’ project for Sheffield Hallam University. I was then commissioned by Guy Topping to design artwork to be integrated into the exterior cladding, which wraps the façade of the Flower Bowl. The client was keen to reference its long association with plants, trees and especially flowers. The artwork is therefore a celebration of flowers inspired not so much by botanical accuracy, rather their abstract super graphic nature at large scale, exploding like fireworks in celebration across the elevations of the building.
The façades are specified in Rockpanel Colours in RAL 7022, routed to reveal the design, which was created in collaboration with Mark Durey at The Cutting Room, Huntingdon, using Alphacam CAD CAM software.
The translation of my artwork to the end product is anything but straightforward. Mark’s intimate knowledge of the technology, combined with his experience in creative problem solving, brings an entirely bespoke method to creating the final installation. The final outcome is exceptionally accurate.
The Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of RockpanelThe Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of RockpanelThe Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of RockpanelThe Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of RockpanelThe Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of Rockpanel
‘The Flower Bowl is an innovative multi-use leisure destination, which sits alongside Barton Grange Garden Centre and Barton Grange Marina at Brock, near Preston in Lancashire.
The Topping family run the Barton Grange Group which owns and operate the Garden Centre, Marina and Flower Bowl and whose history spans back more than seventy years. The company runs several award-winning garden centres, a 4 star hotel and a widely respected and successful landscape contracting firm.
The architects for the project were Worthington Ashworth Jackson Walker (WAJW). They faced several challenges in accommodating the large number of disparate facilities with potentially conflicting requirements in close proximity. WAJW Architect Alistair Williams, “The single greatest challenge was to master the complex geometry of the vast, undulating roof and to detail this in such a way that it could be accurately replicated on site.” The 4200m2 single storey structure now features that gently undulating grass roof that, it is hoped, will eventually have sheep grazing on it’. Rockpanel
The Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of RockpanelThe Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of RockpanelThe Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of RockpanelThe Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of RockpanelThe Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of RockpanelThe Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of Rockpanel
Drawing drafts for moving water and gestural motifs developing patterns from research at the RNHRD and RUH Hydrotherapy Units. Artist: Christopher Tipping
There are many threads of research and interest which have influenced the development and visual narrative of the artwork. The following notes and lists are from my own notebooks, where I made records of research sessions and information which struck me as inspirational.
The Mineral Water Hospital, affectionately known as The Min, was built in 1742 & overlooked open, ‘quiet fields’ and countryside. The Hospital was constructed on the site of Bath’s first Theatre of 1705, by the Architect George Trim, whose Mother was, apparently the sister of the Kings Architect, Inigo Jones. The theatre was demolished 1738.
This theatrical & dramatic connection has influenced the concept of using the glazed Hydrotherapy screens as inspirational painted backdrops – a way of creatively setting the scene within the new space & enhancing the experience of staff and patients using the Pool.
In 1859, with great ceremony, the foundation stone was laid for a new hospital building adjacent to the original site and built upon the grounds of a ‘large formal garden belonging to the Parsonage of St Peter Paul Parish’. This garden is shown on the John Speed map of 1610.
The new Royal United Hospital was built in open fields at Combe Park in 1932 (having moved from central Bath). Combe Park had formerly been the site of the Bath War Hospital built in 1916 to provide beds and medical services for WW1 Casualties. There was a small pond and a stream ran nearby. Patients and staff were encouraged to grow and maintain flower gardens & were rewarded with prizes.
Aerial view of the RUH sitting amidst green fields circa 1932 having moved to this site at Weston Manor from the centre of Bath. Image by kind permission of Bath in Time and Bath War Hospital at the RUH.
In the Building Report on The Mineral Water Hospital, by The House Historians, March 2006, there is a detailed report on The Chapel, (now the home of Bath Medical Museum)and its architectural decorations.
This mentions a number of plants seen in carvings, stained glass and other architectural details, which are wonderfully useful in referencing the legacy of The Min, when it finally closes its doors to move to the RUH site:
Ivy
Oak
Water Buttercup
Wild Poppy
Fig
Vines
White Lilies
Passion Flower
Pomegranate
Hyssop
Colour and pattern used within the stained glass is also influential. Patterns are influenced by the architectural decoration and tiling of The Min Chapel.
Various hydrotherapy treatments, methods and equipment as described as being newly installed in 1915 following extensive alterations, are also very evocative and inspire some abstract interpretation within my creative narrative.
Deep Baths
Aix and Vichy Douches
Scotch and Needle Douches
Reclining and Vapour Baths
Radiant Heat Baths
Sulpher Baths of Potassium Sulphide
Mineral Water Baths
Whirlpool Bath
Hubbard Tank to treat the entire body simultaneously
‘A Vichy Massage required the patient to stand on a rubber covered slab whilst showered with jets of hot mineral water. The needle bath was a circular shower with an array of horizontal pipes which sprayed fine jets of water’.
Descriptions of the Coat of Arms for the Royal National Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases – to give The Min its formal & proper title, is a useful source of colour references, decorative motifs, plants, animals and their meaning.
Black
White for truth, sincerity, peace, innocence and purity
Green
Blue
Purple
Circlet of Fountains
Foxglove
Hares
Meadow Saffron
I like the colour of evening sky, that particular shade of indigo blue.
Water is by turns fluid and abstract, vaporous & ephemeral, contained within many shapes – rivers, ponds, streams, pools, baths, glasses & oceans – any number of vessels.
My creative approach is making connections between place & historic legacy, hydrotherapy practice and an imaginary landscape, which may be conjured up whilst being treated in the pool & feeling the benefits of floating & exercising, whilst being supported by warm water and the care and assistance and encouragement of staff.
‘This hospital was to be entirely self-funded, and even before the hospital was built the raising of monies for it began in earnest. Bath’s Master of Ceremonies, Richard Beau Nash arranged balls and collected subscriptions; wills, donations and even bequests of a diamond, and 1,000 oranges, contributed to the coffers. The list of donors reads like a Who’s Who of 18th century Bath society. Those who donated £40 or more were invited to become a hospital governor, including the artist William Hoare and the actor David Garrick’.
Map on framed canvas. Mrs. Oliver inscribed on reverse. Showing location of Weston Manor prior to incorporation into Royal United Hospital. Image: By kind permission Bath War Hospital at the RUH
This Estate Map above – date unknown – shows the private estate of Weston Manor before the RUH incorporated it into its site in the 20th Century.
‘The hospital moved to its present site, Combe Park, on 11 December 1932. The site had previously been used for the large First World War Bath War Hospital which opened in 1916. In November 1919 it was renamed the Bath Ministry of Pensions Hospital, which it remained until it closed in 1929.
The site was also used by the Forbes Fraser Hospital and the Bath and Wessex Orthopaedic Hospital, both founded in 1924 and which merged into the RUH about 1980. The former manor house on the site, originally medieval but remodelled in the 18th century, became an administrative building. The building is a Grade II* listed building due to its fine Adam style interior’. Wikipedia
Image: Early Draft artwork for North & East Screens. March 2018 RUH HYDROTHERAPY. Artist: Christopher TippingDraft Artworks: Interior detailing explored for the Hydrotherapy Pool – new Therapies Unit, RUH, Bath. Artist: Christopher TippingDraft Artworks: Interior detailing explored for the Hydrotherapy Pool – new Therapies Unit, RUH, Bath. Artist: Christopher TippingDraft Artworks: Interior detailing explored for the North Screen of the Hydrotherapy Pool – new Therapies Unit, RUH, Bath. Artist: Christopher TippingDraft Artworks: Interior detailing explored for the East Screen of the Hydrotherapy Pool – new Therapies Unit, RUH, Bath. Artist: Christopher TippingResearch Images from the RNHRD, The Min Chapel. Artist: Christopher TippingResearch Images from the RNHRD, The Min Chapel. Artist: Christopher TippingResearch Images from the RNHRD, Roman Mosaic from the basement excavations of The Min Artist: Christopher TippingResearch Images developing patterns from research at the RNHRD, including The Min Chapel. Artist: Christopher TippingResearch Images developing patterns from research at the RNHRD, including The Min Chapel. Artist: Christopher TippingResearch Images developing patterns from research at the RNHRD, including The Min Chapel. Artist: Christopher TippingResearch Images developing patterns from research at the RNHRD, including The Min Chapel. Artist: Christopher TippingResearch Images developing patterns from research at the RNHRD, including The Min Chapel. Artist: Christopher Tipping
Rogallo Place Granite Bench by Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Richard Gooding
A simple monolithic granite bench was also commissioned for Rogallo Place by Optivo Homes. A beautiful honed finish is sandblasted with the name of the building alongside detailed motifs reflecting the glazing vinyls of the building’s interior.
The bench was manufactured and supplied in collaboration withHardscape,as ever, great to work with.
Rogallo Place Granite Bench by Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Richard GoodingRogallo Place Granite Bench by Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Richard GoodingRogallo Place Granite Bench by Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Hardscape
The image above was taken during production at Hardscape’s Facility at Long Marston, near Stratford Upon Avon.
Rogallo Place Granite Bench by Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: HardscapeRogallo Place Granite Bench by Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Richard GoodingRogallo Place Granite Bench Drawings by Hardscape for Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: HardscapeRogallo Place Granite Bench by Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Richard GoodingRogallo Place Granite Bench by Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Richard GoodingRogallo Place Granite Bench by Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Francis Knight Art Consultants
Rogallo Place Glazing Vinyl by Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Richard GoodingRogallo Place Glazing Vinyl by Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Richard Gooding
Rogallo Place has now completed on site with all artworks successfully in place. Many thanks to Francis Knightfor the usual brilliant arts management and collaboration, and to Optivo Homesfor the opportunity.
A big thanks also to my specialist manufacturers & collaborators, VGL & Hardscape for their invaluable contribution.
Rogallo Place Glazing Vinyl by Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Richard GoodingRogallo Place Glazing Vinyl by Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Richard GoodingRogallo Place Glazing Vinyl by Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Richard GoodingRogallo Place Glazing Vinyl by Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Richard GoodingRogallo Place Glazing Vinyl by Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Richard GoodingRogallo Place Glazing Vinyl by Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Richard GoodingRogallo Place Glazing Vinyl by Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Richard GoodingRogallo Place Glazing Vinyl by Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Richard Gooding
Draft Artwork: Interior with architectural glazed screens – Christopher TippingExternal draft artwork detail of the Hydrotherapy Pool. Image: Christopher Tipping
I was commissioned by Art at the Heart of the RUHin December 2017 to create artwork in response to the architectural glazing in the Hydrotherapy Pool room at the new Therapies Centre for the Royal United Hospital, Bath. These architectural glass panels are floor to ceiling glazed apertures with a combined 46.40 sq m of glass. I am working in collaboration with PROTO GLASS STUDIOS, Architectural Glass Decorators.
The project is being delivered by Kier Construction Ltd with Architects IBI Group
We have also been engaged with a large group of stakeholders, including staff and service users, some of whom have been are lifelong patients at the RNHRD & RUH. This is an ongoing process and we are taking everyone on the journey with us.
‘FLOW’
“Flow is active. It is not just the water, but it is the way our muscles are warmed and released, allowing blood to flow more freely. It is the freedom from stiffness of joints, when even a centimetre gained is a big triumph. It is active horizontally and not vertically. My spine is fully arthrosed and I cannot turn my head. This is a fundamental problem for AS patients and one of the big exercises in the pool and the gym is trying to turn and look over your shoulder without moving your body. That is flow. It is horizontal”. George Odam RNHRD Lifelong Patient with Ankylosing spondylitis (AS), speaking about his personal journey and experience of hydrotherapy treatment in 2017.
The new RNHRD and BTC will be built close to the main entrance of the Royal United Hospital or RUH; it will be an outpatient centre providing treatment, care and education for patients to recover from episodes of illness or injury, or to manage their long-term condition. The new building will house many of the services currently located at the RNHRD (also known as The Mineral Hospital/ The Min) and the existing RUH therapies and pain management services located in RUH North, under one roof. The Centre will create a centralised and integrated space for staff to work collaboratively, delivering a holistic and patient-centred approach to care.
Old Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH Bath. Image: Christopher TippingHydrotherapy Pool at The Royal Mineral Water Hospital, RNHRD, Bath, 2018. Image:Christopher TippingRubber Ducks at the Hydrotherapy Pool at The Royal Mineral Water Hospital, RNHRD, Bath, 2018. Image: Christopher TippingObjects at the Hydrotherapy Pool at The Royal Mineral Water Hospital, RNHRD, Bath, 2018. Image: Christopher TippingRoyal National Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases, Bath. Image: Christopher TippingPediment of the Royal Mineral Water Hospital, Bath, aka The Min 2018. Image: Christopher Tipping
The Min, as the RNHRD is affectionately known, has a small Medical Museum situated in the Old Chapel. It is a fascinating collection and curated and managed by a small group of dedicated and enthusiastic people, who allowed me access to the photographic Archives. This was very much appreciated.
‘In 2012 the Royal National Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases [The Mineral Hospital] opened a small museum to showcase their collection. Now, with the imminent closure of the hospital in the centre of Bath, our museum has been granted custody of the Collection of the Min, which includes records dating back to the 1740s, artefacts, the paintings and other pieces of art from around the Hospital, memorabilia, and photographs relating to rheumatology, medicine and pharmacy’.
A Hubbard Tank was used for entire body treatments in Hydrotherapy. Image: Copyright & by kind permission of Bath Medical Museum, RNHRDPatient taking a Nauheim effervescent bath, date unknown – Image: Copyright & by kind permission of Bath Medical Museum, RNHRDVichy spray massage treatment. Date unknown – Image: Copyright & by kind permission of Bath Medical Museum, RNHRDBrass identity medallions worn by patients in the 18th Century. Image: Copyright & by kind permission of Bath Medical Museum, RNHRD
Image: Draft artwork with re-imagined stones by Christopher Tipping 2018
I have been commissioned to create artwork to be digitally printed onto optically clear vinyl for the external glazing of the new Cancer Unit at Dorset County Hospital. Dorset’s pioneering new cancer unit is under construction and is due to be delivered in 2018. It is being built and operated jointly by Poole and Dorset Hospitals. My approach has been framed by a research trip I made back in June 2008 to the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site and to Dorchester Museums Archive Collections and the Natural History Museum in London.
Image: Christopher Tipping- Jurassic Coast Dorset 2008Image: Christopher Tipping- Display Box of Microfossils, Dorset County Museum 2008Image: Found objects and natural abstractions for Dorset County Hospital Cancer Unit by Christopher Tipping
Ten years ago I created artwork for wayfinding and inlaid bespoke floor coverings for the corridors of the main hospital buildings and also for Maiden Castle House, which provides Psychiatric Services for the Trust. This original body of work, completed in 2010 was considered a resonant starting point for this new project in 2018 and has been instrumental in underpinning the artwork created for the Cancer Unit.
Alex Coulter, former Arts Manager, Arts in Hospital writing in 2008 said –
‘The artist, Chris Tipping, researched and recorded geological structures, fossils and land forms along the Jurassic coast as the basis for his designs. He made drawings on the coast and in Dorset County Museum’s collections and talked to geologists based at Southampton University to help inform his ideas. Chris was interested in the idea that the floors in the hospital could be interpreted as the layers or strata of the coast with fossil like patterns embedded in them and fragments and elements emerging where different layers meet. They are inlaid into the floor at key areas such as lift thresholds and at the top of staircases to help with wayfinding while smaller elements break up long expanses of corridor. It was Chris’s idea to curve the edges of the flooring and to reveal sections of designs rather as you might see a fragment in the cliff. The technology used is sophisticated with laser cutting creating elements which fit together with no need for sealant in-between. His designs enliven what would otherwise be vast expanses of plain flooring and contribute to making the hospital environment more stimulating and appealing for patients – a healing environment’.
‘Initial consultation with patients and staff suggested that the theme of the Cancer Unit artworks should evolve around nature and light, “Letting in the Light”. Medical and psychological evidence is strong that natural images, textures, patterns and light are all beneficial for wellbeing and recovery . Contact with Nature has been reported to have psychological benefits by reducing stress, improving attention, by having a positive effect on mental restoration, and by coping with attention deficits.
Natural light is important to healing and wellbeing and patients with views of open spaces get better faster. As the views from the new Cancer Unit will be limited to other hospital buildings and urban Dorchester, art can provide an alternative view for patients through translucent imagery of landscape and natural forms on windows. The window vinyls must in any case screen off views of the interior from outside by passers-by and occupiers of adjacent buildings, as necessary for patient’s actual and perceived privacy and confidentiality without the need for blinds and the accompanying loss of light’.
Dorset’s pioneering new cancer unit is under construction and due to be delivered in 2018 is being built and operated jointly by Poole and Dorset Hospitals. It will deliver world class health care for our local communities. The project will develop cancer facilities for patients all across Dorset and bring radiotherapy services to Dorchester for the first time. The new facilities will be life-changing, particularly for people who have previously had to travel long distances for radiotherapy services in Poole.
The unit will serve people of all ages, who have been diagnosed with cancer as well as their families. Patients who use this service are likely to be distressed and for some people, they may be living with a terminal diagnosis. The unit will be home to new linear accelerators (LINAC) – the device most commonly used for external beam radiation treatments for patients with cancer. It will be a multi-functional space offering life changing radiotherapy, consulting rooms and counselling rooms. The unit will also be used by support groups. The unit is being funded Dorset County Hospital Charity, Dorset County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust(DCHFT), Poole Hospital NHS Foundation Trustand with a major legacy from the photographer Robert White, a local man who died from cancer in 2015′.
Image: Draft Artwork for Dorset County Hospital Cancer Unit by Christopher TippingImage: Draft Artwork – Found & re-imagined stones for Dorset County Hospital Cancer Unit by Christopher TippingImage: Draft artwork for Dorset County Hospital Cancer Unit by Christopher Tipping
Alan Lovell of Bannister Hall Landscape Supplies sent some great production images of the 7m diameter PietraPave granite mosaic I created, during its recent construction in China. The work has been manufactured and is now on its way to the UK for installation at The Flower Bowl, Barton Grange nr Preston.
7m diameter granite mosaic during manufacture in China. Image by kind permission: Alan Lovell, Bannister Hall Landscape Supplies, Pietra Pave7m diameter granite mosaic during manufacture in China. Image by kind permission: Alan Lovell, Bannister Hall Landscape Supplies, Pietra Pave7m diameter granite mosaic during manufacture in China. Image by kind permission: Alan Lovell, Bannister Hall Landscape Supplies, Pietra Pave7m diameter granite mosaic during manufacture in China. Image by kind permission: Alan Lovell, Bannister Hall Landscape Supplies, Pietra Pave7m diameter granite mosaic during manufacture in China. Image by kind permission: Alan Lovell, Bannister Hall Landscape Supplies, Pietra Pave7m diameter granite mosaic during manufacture in China. Image by kind permission: Alan Lovell, Bannister Hall Landscape Supplies, Pietra Pave7m diameter granite mosaic during manufacture in China. Image by kind permission: Alan Lovell, Bannister Hall Landscape Supplies, Pietra Pave
7m diameter granite mosaic during manufacture in China. Image by kind permission: Alan Lovell, Bannister Hall Landscape Supplies, Pietra Pave7m diameter granite mosaic during manufacture in China. Image by kind permission: Alan Lovell, Bannister Hall Landscape Supplies, Pietra Pave
By the way, I chose the worst day of the week to make a site visit to Barton Grange in Lancashire to check on progress – rained all day – the one poor day out of a glorious week of fine weather. Images not as good as they could be.
Externally, the rainscreen boards are almost all in place – with many exhibiting various stages of weathering, which starts with the exposed routed board being a bright yellow tone and gradually darkening to a rich tan / copper colour.
The Cutting Room in Huntingdon have now almost completed cutting the last of the boards and these will be shipped to site during the next week or so.
Main Entrance Elevation in progress at The Flower Bowl. Image: Christopher TippingInstallation of cnc routed rainscreen facade in progress at The Flower Bowl. Image: Christopher TippingInstallation of cnc routed rainscreen facade in progress at The Flower Bowl. Image: Christopher TippingInstallation of cnc routed rainscreen facade in progress at The Flower Bowl. Image: Christopher TippingInstallation of cnc routed rainscreen facade in progress at The Flower Bowl. Image: Christopher TippingInstallation of cnc routed rainscreen facade in progress at The Flower Bowl. Image: Christopher TippingInstallation of cnc routed rainscreen facade in progress at The Flower Bowl. Image: Christopher TippingInstallation of cnc routed rainscreen facade in progress at The Flower Bowl. Image: Christopher TippingInstallation of cnc routed rainscreen facade in progress at The Flower Bowl. Image: Christopher TippingInstallation of cnc routed rainscreen facade in progress at The Flower Bowl. Image: Christopher TippingInstallation of cnc routed rainscreen facade in progress at The Flower Bowl. Image: Christopher TippingInstallation of cnc routed rainscreen facade in progress at The Flower Bowl. Image: Christopher TippingInstallation of cnc routed rainscreen facade in progress at The Flower Bowl. Image: Christopher TippingInstallation of cnc routed rainscreen facade in progress at The Flower Bowl. Image: Christopher TippingInstallation of cnc routed rainscreen facade in progress at The Flower Bowl. Image: Christopher TippingInstallation of cnc routed rainscreen facade in progress at The Flower Bowl. Image: Christopher TippingInstallation of cnc routed rainscreen facade in progress at The Flower Bowl. Image: Christopher TippingInstallation of cnc routed rainscreen facade in progress at The Flower Bowl. Image: Christopher TippingInstallation of cnc routed rainscreen facade in progress at The Flower Bowl. Image: Christopher Tipping
