Gold Coast's Robina Hospital by BVN wins World Architecture News award for Interior Design

Gold Coast's Robina Hospital by BVN wins World Architecture News award for Interior Design Designed by BVN, it was known for creating 'a healthcare environment which challenges preconceptions of how a hospital should look and feel and what the hospital experience ought to be like. Impressed by the use of patterns and colour that act as visual surprises and temporary distractions for both patients and staff, the jury commended the 'abundant natural light, views to near or far landscape and the considered application of vibrant colour give the spaces a non-institutional feel. ' According to Mark Grimmer, BVN principal in charge of the Robina design, 'this award acknowledges the importance of paying attention to the quality of health care environments. Although it contains the library, the new library spaces bear little relation to traditional library design, instead the focus is on flexibility and the opportunity for students to come together in large groups or retreat to quiet spaces for individual reading. The jury noted the large timber stair 'wittily called La Scala' as a surprising and dominant feature that serves the functional purpose of connecting two levels of the space and also acts as a grandstand providing seating watch movies or share a lecture. ' Another BVN project Ravenswood School, Mabel Fidler Building, was also shortlisted in the 'Interiors and Design Awards 2011'. ' They found that 'this design approach continues even to the most 'hidden' spaces such as the operating theatres themselves where large format graphics bring unexpected colour and texture into the intense clinical environment, providing relief and an opportunity for re-focus. ' Robina Hospital forms part of the infrastructure of the Gold Coast Health Services District and its expansion has transformed a small local hospital into a major regional health facility. They also noted how the design produced dramatic cantilevers providing protected spaces for informal learning and 'creating a perception that the library is floating, with its light, white cladding above the school. Gold Coast's Robina Hospital by BVN wins World Architecture News award for Interior Design Trade News selected by Local Linkup on 07/03/2012