Submissions

"HOSPITALIZATION" OF PUBLIC SPACE
by Zdravko Trivic from Serbia & Montenegro

Hospital is usually seen as enclosed, unpleasant space, more related to curing the illness rather than to generating of health. Similarly, our contemporary cities are usually more concerned with minimizing the effects of diseases after they occur instead of their prevention. However, this series of photographs shows that even the “experience of illness” might be “pleasant” in its very unusual, contradictory, ironical and almost perverse way. This series attempts to emphasize the importance for our contemporary cities to re-embrace their role of healing and prevention, of finding new and surprising solutions, instead of constant generating of problems. Although often abused (especially in privatized public spaces) ambient quality of space still has a potential to become an extremely powerful tool that can facilitate positive and pleasurable multi-sensorial experiences and therefore higher state of health and well-being. In order to achieve this higher state architects and urban planners must keep looking beyond physical matter and immediate perception, beyond hygienic, fashionable and simplistic approaches, beyond mere safety and efficiency. Architecture should go deeper into understanding of complex human nature and people’s subjective experience of space. [Location: Clinic Café, Clark Quay, Singapore]