H. K. Architects' Annual Dinner
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ARCHITECTS HONOURED FOR Q. E. HOSPITAL DESIGN
Mr. Wong.
Mr. Hirst.
TWO Public Works Department
architects were honoured last month by the presentation of the Royal Institute of British Architects' Bronze Medal Award for 1963.
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The architects won the medal for their design of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital the largest in the Com- monwealth, and the biggest building in the Colony. It is the second largest structure in the Far East.
The architects Edwin Wong and John Hirst received the award from the Governor (Sir David Trench) at the annual dinner of the Hong Kong Society of Architects. The Governor is Society Patron.
The medal is presented every three years for a building of exceptional merit, It was the first time it had been presented in Hong Kong.
The two P.W.D. architects prepar- ed more than 2500 sheets of drawings to work from for the construction of the $70 million project.
The Hospital took nearly three years of construction work, and several more years of planning.
It was designed as an acute general hospital for 1338 inpatients. Addi- tional special provision was made for pshysiotherapy, radiotherapy, and staff quarters for all grades of staff.
The 30-acre site is in the centre of Kowloon Peninsula оп а slight eminence which allows for ideal east- west orientation, combined with com- manding views of the harbour and Kowloon Hills.
Tht Hospital has a total floor-area of almost a million square feet. The basic form is a double cross with the main ward blocks 13 storeys high.
These face north-south in a straight line. Related special units theatres, laboratories form the lower wing blocks facing east-west.
all
This basic form gives natural light- ing and cross-ventilation to sections. It avoids close-overlooking from one block to the other.
THE ARCHITECTS
JOHN HIRST
was born in 1918 in China. He received his early
education in both Hankow and
England. He graduated with honours from the Architectural Association School of Architecture, London.
After serving with the Roya! Engineers during the War, he worked with several London architectural firms. In 1955 he joined the P.W.D., Hong Kong. He is married with three children.
EDWIN WONG was born in New Zealand in 1926, and from one to 12 he lived in Canton.
In 1952 he graduated from the School of Architecture, University of New Zealand. He worked as an architect in New Zealand until 1955 when he went to England for a year.
After a world tour he joined Hong Kong P.W.D. in 1957. He is married with one child,
OBJECTIVES
In an interview the architects said one of their main objectives had been "Lo lessen the institutional character of the building." With this in mind planting and landscaping were designed "to catch the eye, and thus take the mind off the repetitive pattern of the massive stonework."
"On the lower sections, the unsym- pathetic bulk is broken up through the interplay of spaces and the various changes of levels" said Edwin Wong.
John Hirst said one of the prime concerns had been the co-ordination of all hospital services. "The build- ing consisted of many more services than in a normal building, and co- ordinating the thousands of pipes and water systems was a problem.
"We aimed to achieve simplicity, efficency, and economy. A great problem was to keep all pipes and ventilation systems out of sight to give the wards a clean tidy look.
"Materials able to withstand con- stant scrubbing and cleaning had to be used throughout" Mr. Hirst said.
In choosing the Queen Elizabeth Hospital the Royal Institute of British Architects considered 21 buildings nominated for the award.
A suitable plaque is being designed for the Hospital.
THE HONG KONG & FAR EAST BUILDER-VOLUME 19, NUMBER 4
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