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School of Pharmacy, Hull

Part 2 Project 2004
Michael Tite
Bartlett School of Architecture (UCL) | UK
In-between Smith & Nephew’s surgical dressings factory and the decaying Albert Dock in Hull, a self-cleaning Pharmacy Department unites disparate social groups.

The proposal cradles ‘connecting’ activities, marrying the benevolent corporation with the legacy of academia through a series of linked common-spaces that temper the surrounding industrial landscape.

The scheme explores how materials can transcend their original function both technically and symbolically. Synchronising with academic term-cycles, ‘breathing’ building parts fatten; shake themselves dry; purify air or harden according to period and semester.

With its healing agenda, from city to micro-particle, the school becomes decontaminating organ, social-connector and wholesome corporate emblem.

Michael Tite


Michael chose a difficult site in Hull to propose a university building that is directly linked with the industrial activity of the site. It is situated in the existing Wray Smith & Nephew factory, one of the biggest employers in Hull. His desire to cross-relate academic and industrial sectors, different social groups and activities parallels his open-mindedness as an inventive designer working with a diverse range of ideas and media. Michael turns mundane everyday materials into technically articulated architectural innovations. He finishes his Diploma with a building design that is a highly imaginative response to complex environmental and social issues.

2004
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