staff profiles

Artefact

Dykebar Psychiatric Hospital, Paisley, Scotland

A research led integration of art and space to create and realise an improved healing environment in part of Dykebar Psychiatric Hospital, Paisley, Scotland. Whilst a related healthcare environmental output with certain similarities to the SANCTUARY, significant research was undertaken to understand the requirements of the particular environment of a psychiatric hospital. Research included identifying a site within the hospital and its grounds to demonstrate how art integrated into architecture could improve the healthcare environment and impact positively on patient behaviour. I adapted the main corridor in the hospital to de-institutionalise the space, altering the space to reflect a natural sensibility, affecting changes to colour, structure, light and materiality to re-define the space. The entire FINDING SPACE research initiative will be formally launched in March of this year. The work is published on the Finding Space website (www.findingspace.org). Empirical evidence is being gathered through a process of evaluation of my research output by Dr Edward Edgerton, an environmental psychologist from Paisley University and will be published at a later date. The research was presented as a paper, 'Finding Space: Art, Architecture and the Healing Environment', at the 19th IAPS Conference, 'Environment, Health and Sustainable Development' at the National Library, Alexandria, Egypt in 2005. Published by Dr Edward Edgerton and Donald Urquhart.

01/11/2006