Hospital Building That Merges Science and Art: Alvar Aalto†

Architecture is one of the fine arts—despite its high technical content. It belongs with painting and sculpture. Historically—from ancient Greece through Rome, the Middle Ages, and the Renaissance—painting and sculpture were closely associated with buildings. Sculptures and mosaics decorated buildings themselves—as, for instance, the Parthenon in Athens or the Byzantine churches—or they complemented them, like the altars in medieval cathedrals. Later, in the 16th and 17th centuries, the illusionistic frescoes, such as those by the Bolognese artist Annibale Carracci (1560–1609), created virtual open spaces in the interiors of palaces and churches. Such associations of painting with architecture can also be seen much later, as in Matisse's Chapel of the Rosary in Vence (Chapelle du Rosaire de Vence) in Provence or in the nondenominational Rothko Chapel in Houston, Texas. Lastly, contemporary public art is part of urban spaces.Architecture relates also to health, of course. In fact, some architects probably see healthcare as part of culture more clearly than many other professional groups (1). Initially, hospitals were buildings designed for the care of the needy rather than as specific places for the ill. The Shorter Oxford English …