Health & Social Healing Centre
(Medicine,Sun, Earth, Moon)
Little Salmon Carmacks First Nation
Carmacks, Yukon (Under Construction 2011)
The new Health & Social Healing Centre reflects the culture of the Little Salmon Carmacks First Nation in accommodating the health needs for all its citizens.
Reflective in the overall design of the Health & Social Healing Centre are symbolic First Nation cultural elements. The earth to sky orientation is an important part of traditional belief. Sacred geometries are employed as an ordering element for the building. The circle and its relation to the skycape is used as a design metaphor - a symbol of the cycles of life and healing.
A prominent community space featured in the building is the Healing Hall which is provided for meeting and counselling use. The Healing Hall is aligned on axis with the summer and winter solstices, and the spring and fall equinoxes. The four main beams, which support the ceiling of the Healing Hall (spokes of the medicine wheel), represent the four cardinal directions, the four elements with their corresponding colours, and the four components of healing. Secondary beams radiate out and correspond with the lunar calendar.
The project is designed as a green, energy efficient, healthy building.
