Alex de Rijke, founding director of dRMM, describes the latest Maggie’s Centre in Oldham as a straightforward box with a powerful void in the centre. Located near Manchester, the new cancer support centre has sunshine yellow flooring and corrugated-style timber cladding.
The single-storey building stands on legs over a gravelled garden area. One birch tree has been planted in the centre of the garden and is enveloped by the void’s asymmetrical glazing. ‘The idea was of a kind of treehouse in its wood,’ says de Rijke. ‘I knew that we didn’t need to do much more than bring the outside into the building.’
The firm sited the centre on a northerly corner site of The Royal Oldham Hospital – a space formerly occupied by a mortuary. From there, its north-facing glazed wall has inspiring views to the Pennines.
Explore the architecture of Maggie’s Centres in the UK, including this Frank Gehry-designed facility in Dundee.
On approaching the centre, the scent of tulipwood – a cross-laminated hardwood – wafts over a short footbridge. Timber is a key ingredient throughout, from the door handles and the slatted ceiling to the kitchen’s walnut-topped counter and large round table.
The wood is off-set by a poured resin floor, and the tall doors – all in an unexpectedly bright yellow. More warmth is expressed through grey felt, used to frame doorways and as a backing to the seating nooks. Meanwhile a full-height reversible curtain loop by Dutch designer Petra Blaisse can cordon off one part of the open plan space for privacy.
‘This is a reaction to hospital design and the reminder that it can be different from the depressing norms of the hospital environment,’ says de Rijke. Maggie’s Oldham is the latest in a string of centres by high-profile and interesting architects at hospitals across the UK and beyond.
London-based dRMM join Frank Gehry, the late Zaha Hadid, Rem Koolhaas, Snøhetta, Amanda Levete and Herzog & de Meuron, among others. The blockbuster line-up surely makes Maggie’s CEO (and former cancer nurse) Laura Lee one of the most significant commissioners of contemporary architecture.
The single-storey building stands on legs over a gravelled garden area.
Tulipwood is used widely throughout the project, chosen because of its warmth and positive health benefits.
The elevated building is open plan with exposed timber and glazing.
Curved glazing brings nature into the interior from below.
Maggie’s is a charity that provides practical and emotional support to people living with cancer.
Tulipwood is one of the most sustainable timber species because of how fast it replenishes, through natural growth alone
A landscaped garden beneath the building grows up organically through the building.
INFORMATION
For more information, visit the Maggie’s Centre website and the dRMM Architects website
-
‘The United States of América’: how Willy Chavarria is rewriting American fashionWallpaper* catches up with Willy Chavarria, who staged his latest show, ‘América’, in a disused bank on New York’s Wall Street yesterday evening (September 6 2024)
-
Designer India Mahdavi on her perfect restaurant experienceAs part of Laila Gohar's guest editorship, she asked friends in the industry and her wider creative circle to relive their perfect restaurant experience. Here, designer India Mahdavi recounts a perfect night dining under the pitch-black Egyptian sky
-
Mark Armijo McKnight’s bodily landscapes capture the tactile serenity of the American WestThe artist’s new exhibition at the Whitney Museum, which is organised by the museum curator Drew Sawyer, offers a succinct window into his contemplative suggestion of queering a landscape
-
Thames Distillers raises our spirits with its new home and bar in LondonFords bar at Thames Distillers' new home is a future London classic, designed by Transit Studio; we raise a toast to the gin maker
-
Wallpaper* Architects’ Directory 2024: meet the practicesIn the Wallpaper* Architects Directory 2024, our latest guide to exciting, emerging practices from around the world, 20 young studios show off their projects and passion
-
Beacon House’s pink extension brightens up a Victorian London home refreshA pink extension in north London is part of the Beacon House project by Office S&M – the dramatic refresh of a Victorian home
-
Brown Urbanism's little triangle house is an ingenious urban infillEmerging UK studio Brown Urbanism is part of the Wallpaper* Architects’ Directory 2024
-
Kasawoo's Greek red cabin retreat is perfect for minimalist escapesThe Wallpaper* Architects Directory 2024 welcomes Kasawoo, a young UK practice that draws on a new minimalist approach
-
Tilde House brings a listed London home up to contemporary, sustainable standardsTilde House by Neil Dusheiko Architects blends Victorian elegance, sustainability and contemporary flair in north London’s historic Canonbury area
-
A walk through The Brentford Project, a lesser-known west London neighbourhoodThe Brentford Project in west London completes its first phase, offering modern residences, a wealth of public space and waterfront living
-
This clever Camden house renovation brings light, space and zenEBBA architects’ Camden house renovation and double-height extension transform life in a London terraced home
