The Room Next Door

In The Room Next Door, Pedro Almodóvar follows a woman with terminal cancer who makes the choice to leave her treatments. She leaves the hospital behind to spend her final days in her own way, free of drama, free of rush. Her calm, mindful choice inspired us to imagine a space where death is not hidden, rushed, or sterile.

In Switzerland, assisted suicide is legal, although architecture rarely supports this choice. Most die at home or institutionally out of sight, out of town.

We conceived of a building that brings death back into public existence—not to expose it, but to acknowledge it. On the ground floor, on Bucheggplatz, we have offered an open, public ground floor area with a discreet consultation space for those in distress. On the upper floor, a multifunctional space is given over to local use, paired with a restrained care area with medical presence.

Two private apartments enable individuals at the end of life to remain with loved ones, experiencing small moments slowly, intentionally. Reachable from every level, a cylindrical silent room provides an open view of the sky. A pause space, open to everyone.

We don't offer answers. We imagined a space, a common space, where leaving is part of living.

Project by: Esteban Germann, Maurice Paulsen, Karim Anello

Teaching team: Anna Puigjaner, Dafni Retzepi, Ethel Baraona Pohl, Lisa Maillard, Luis Úrculo, Pol Esteve Castelló, He Shen

Design Studio: Spring 2025

Photos and Videos taken by Luis Úrculo