Tag Archives: Healthcare Architecture

Blog, Cancer Unit Dorset County Hospital, Healthcare Projects, Public Art

ROBERT WHITE CANCER CENTRE – RADIOTHERAPY – PART 4 – INSTALLATION

November 19, 2019 Christopher Tipping Leave a comment

Wednesday 13th November was the day for the installation of my project in the Radiotherapy Unit. Swift Signs, who printed the work were also installing and their team did a great job.

Installation of Glazing Vinyl Artworks by Swift Signs at the Robert White Cancer Centre, Radiotherapy Unit. Image: Swift Signs

Above: Detail of Clinic Room W003 . These windows have an over-layer of frosted vinyl applied to the optically clear vinyl to add privacy to this sequence of Clinical Rooms along a corridor. These windows face out on to an external walkway and open space opposite the Hospital Canteen, so the need for privacy was an important issue. The vinyl is still translucent, which means natural light can pass through it.

Above: Above: Detail of Clinic Room W003

Above: Detail of Clinic Room W002

Above: Detail of Clinic Room W005 – Tech Services

Above: Detail of artworks in Clothed Waiting Room CW02 (Reception). The artwork in this space is made up of transparent colour printed onto optically clear vinyl, which means it is effectively ‘see through’. This was a required detail here to allow the external landscape and as much light as possible to enter the space.

Above: Detail of artworks in Clothed Waiting Room CW02 (Reception). The vinyl has an adhesive coating, but is ‘floated’ into position on the glass with a light spray of water, allowing for final positioning. A rubber squeegee is then used to remove excess water and any air trapped between the vinyl and the glass.

Above: The External Lobby Entrance seen from outside at dusk, reveals the levels of transparency in the artwork. The impact is soft and subtle, allowing for clear views into the building. At nighttime, this effect becomes almost like stained glass.

Above: Staff Meeting Room CW06. This room was overlooked by a raised footpath accessed by a flight of steps just outside the room, making privacy an issue. We kept the top set of windows free of artwork to maximise daylight and to bring the surrounding trees and landscape into the artwork as well.

Blog, Healthcare Projects, Public Art, RUH Hydrotherapy Pool

Official Opening – PART ONE

November 1, 2019 Christopher Tipping Leave a comment

Architectural Glass Artwork in the Hydrotherapy Pool. RNHRD & Brownsword Therapies Centre, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping

Tuesday 22nd October 2019 – Today was the Official Opening of the RNHRD & Brownsword Therapies Centre at the RUH, Bath. I was invited to attend the event and to be presented to HRH Duchess of Cornwall who gracefully performed the honours.

Formalities aside, it was a great day and I was very touched and proud to have been involved in the project . The weather was pretty glorious on the day – so the glazing appeared at its very best., reflecting perfectly off the pool surface and creating the most beautiful backdrop for the day’s events. Positive comments all round was a great sign that the project had been a collaborative & creative success. A massive thanks to Art at the Heart and especially to the efforts of Hetty Dupays, Art and Design Manager and her brilliant team.

We made the front page of the Bath Chronicle ! Left to Right – Suzanne Rastrick, Hetty Dupays, me, Gemma Pugh and HRH Duchess of Cornwall. Image: Artur Lesniak for the Bath Chronicle

Left to Right - Suzanne Rastrick, Hetty Dupays, me, HRH Duchess of Cornwall, Gemma Pugh. Image: RUH — Left to Right – Suzanne Rastrick, Hetty Dupays, me, HRH Duchess of Cornwall, Gemma Pugh. Image: RUH

Twitter feed from Art at the Heart of the RUH, represented the events of the day. Image: Art at the Heart, RUH

…and here I am Photo-Bombing. Right to Left: Suzanne Rastrick, (me), Gina Sargeant & Gemma Pugh. Image: RUH

Detail: East Screen. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping — Detail: Reflections of the East Screen in the Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping

East Glazing Screen, Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping

*North (Courtyard) Glazing Screen, Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping*

Of course, none of this would have been possible without a brilliant and supportive project team, including manufacturers and creative collaborators Proto Glass Studios and Project Architects IBI Group, working under the guidance and partnership of Kier Construction and the RUH.

Detail: North (Courtyard) Screen. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping

Blog, Healthcare Projects, Public Art, RUH Hydrotherapy Pool

Installed !

March 21, 2019 Christopher Tipping Leave a comment

They are finally in place! The architectural glazed screens have now been installed in the Hydrotherapy Pool room at the new RNHRD & Therapies Centre at the RUH in Bath.

Detail of the East Glazing Screen, seen from behind the interior scaffolding. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH. Image: Hetty Dupays

On Tuesday 19th March 2019, the screens were carefully installed by SEH Commercial. The East Screen was installed in the morning and the North Screen in the afternoon. Proto Glass Studios delivered the 18 sealed units – a total of 42 sqm of decorated glass – in two runs from their premises in Pewsey, Wiltshire. I couldn’t be there, which was a real disappointment, but the process was documented by a number of people on site. I am showing their images here.

There is still a fair amount of work to be done in finishing the new buildings, both inside & out, so for now and the foreseeable future at least, the glass will be covered by boards & protected. These are the last images we will see before the building is officially opened.

This project has been a great journey to make in collaboration with a wonderful project team. Hetty Dupays, director of Art at the Heart of the RUH who commissioned the work has been a most supportive project manager. Also a big thanks to Gina Sargeant, Head of Therapies & Clinical Site, whose direct and pragmatic approach was balanced by her humour. I could not have delivered this artwork without the input and advocacy of both these brilliant people. A massive thanks to all staff and patients from both the RUH and RHNRD (The Min), IBI Group Architects & Main Contractor Kier who collaborated throughout, and who offered their support and experience.

Detail: External elevation of the North Screen from the Courtyard Garden. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH. Image: Hetty Dupays

External elevation of the North Screen from the Courtyard Garden. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH. Image: Hetty Dupays

Detail of the topmost panels of the East Glazing Screen, seen from behind the interior scaffolding. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH. Image: Hetty Dupays

Detail of the lower panels of the East Glazing Screen, seen from behind the interior scaffolding. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH. Image: Hetty Dupays

Hetty Dupays standing in front of the East Screen. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH. Image: Gina Sargeant

The external wall elevations and frames are still in progress, as are the interiors and the Screens will be padded out and boarded up from today, to protect them during the remaining works on site.