Hospice -
Home for the
Terminally ill

“Our Light” is unique because of its central urban location in Rotterdam. It showcases how a hospice can be integrated into the city, providing continuity between life and death for its residents. Inspired by the traditional ritual of releasing lanterns onto water, the design illustrates an innovative system of interconnected floating structures, creating a modular approach to both public and private supportive experiences.

This project stands out for its conceptual clarity and emotional depth. It transforms architectural space into a narrative experience, inviting users to engage not just with form, but with memory, meaning, and atmosphere.

The site selection in the center of the city is commendable. The idea of lanterns glowing at night as if floating above water is intriguing. However, the development of interior spaces often feels tight, and there could have been more programmatic exploration of the outdoor areas.

The poetic beauty of synthesizing lanterns into inhabited structures is a striking gesture, offering a delicate and symbolic presence that floats with serenity on the water’s surface. This conceptual move bridges lightness with inhabitation in a way that feels both emotionally resonant and technically intriguing. The supporting investigations deserve commendation for their depth and ambition, grounding the ethereal concept in thoughtful exploration.

Visual materials elevate the scheme, with the top-right image of the approach standing out as particularly evocative—an invitation into the project’s spatial and symbolic narrative. While the proposal’s identity as a hospice remains somewhat ambiguous, that ambiguity may be part of its strength: this is a bold submission that challenges conventions and invites reflection on the nature of care, space, and presence.

A great concept—using a dispersed plan and straight walls to create privacy and frame views. However, the architecture does not appear as clear or resolved as the plan itself.

The project demonstrates a sensitive integration of the built environment with the natural surroundings. The design offers a variety of settings for different activities and experiences, emphasizing the importance of dignity and freedom of choice.

The facility is immersed within the park, offering various types of informal outdoor spaces. Playful fabric walls and draped ceilings evoke a camping experience. Varied ceiling heights and a continuous flow of spaces enable views across both interior and exterior realms. The continuity of structural beams—in height and materiality—helps unify the architecture.

An intriguing proposal, set and composed within an existing natural landscape. At first glance it may appear random, but it is cleverly planned to provide outward views and ease of access. The limited palette of construction materials is effective. This is a convincing and well-thought-through narrative. My only concern lies with the eucalyptus trees—often referred to as “window makers” due to their tendency to drop branches without warning.

The proposal demonstrates a commendable sense of lightness and delicacy, with a plan that articulates a graceful spatial rhythm—both poised and intentional. Circulation flows with elegant fluidity, enabling intuitive movement through the site and reinforcing the project's conceptual clarity. The atmospheric renders evoke a strong emotional response, effectively capturing the ambience and character of the envisioned spaces. However, the sectional drawings remain underdeveloped, which is particularly notable given the context’s complexity; they lack the depth and precision necessary to communicate vertical relationships, spatial layering, and environmental considerations that are critical to the project’s overall success.

This submission has potential but remains conceptual in nature—geometry dominates the plan. Greater consideration should be given to sun exposure, views, the relationship to the adjacent lake, and the development of programmatic spaces.

The proposal exhibits notable formal clarity, with a plan that communicates spatial organization with confident simplicity. The creation of an internalized community space lends a thoughtful sense of enclosure and intimacy, successfully anchoring the scheme’s social intent. Particularly compelling is the articulation of the external wall, which brings rhythm and programmatic nuance to the perimeter—an elegant device that transforms the façade into a sequence of spatial events. The illustrations are captivating, especially those that sensitively convey the seasonal character of the hospice and its evolving atmosphere. However, the absence of a view into the internal corridor space is a missed opportunity; such a visual would have enriched the understanding of circulation and reinforced the project's inward-looking qualities.

Memory House is a quiet, contemplative space where architecture becomes a vessel for emotion. Its minimalist design and sensory richness evoke personal reflection, making it feel more like a lived memory than a building.

A good concept based on sensorial experience, executed in a clear and creative way. The evocative visuals are particularly strong.

A convincing proposal—ordered and well considered. It presents a believable sequence of spaces, disciplined and coherently related. The enclosed central courtyard, shared living spaces, residents’ rooms, and social areas are convincingly depicted. A strong and cohesive narrative.

Strong visuals and a potentially delightful composition. However, the project feels somewhat clinical and perhaps not appropriate in terms of privacy or gathering areas. It lacks a sense of dignity.

The facility is organized into neighborhoods around an inner courtyard, successfully breaking down the scale. A crenelated exterior wall interlocks the building with the outdoors, providing access to nature—visually and potentially physically—throughout. Circulation spaces are richly programmed for both private and communal activities. However, the chapel should be relocated to allow for circumambulation of the inner courtyard.

This submission demonstrates a well-considered spatial organization. The use of quadrants around a central courtyard effectively defines zones of activity and fosters a sense of calm enclosure. The accompanying visuals strongly convey atmosphere, particularly in illustrating the gentle transparency and softened edges that express the scheme’s architectural language.

The isometric image (second from the bottom right) disrupts the narrative—its rigidity and overt determinism feel misaligned with the otherwise graceful composition and intuitive flow. A more nuanced approach to that drawing could have better supported the project’s inherent sensitivity. Additionally, the section drawing holds untapped potential—it could have further articulated the spatial relationships and revealed the subtle layering hinted at in the plan.

This project doesn’t merely meet the brief—it enriches it. It interprets care, death, and space not through prescribed forms but through an existential architectural language. In doing so, it elevates the conversation around what a hospice can be.

The planning is not only remarkably legible—it becomes the very scaffold of the scheme’s narrative, weaving spatial clarity with emotive purpose. Its response to celestial movement and the intimacy of its immediate context—achieved through the sublimation of mass into terrain—is both masterful and deeply evocative. The configuration’s embrace of liminal space feels profoundly apt given the sensitivity of the brief.