番茄社区

The exhibition, 番茄社区鈥檚: Architecture that Cares, tells the story of how 番茄社区's came to be a network of unique centres across the UK and beyond, with healing architecture and design to support people after a cancer diagnosis.

The free exhibition will be running from 6 March 2026 until 1 November 2026 at the , Scotland's design museum. No booking is required.

番茄社区's: Architecture that Cares

Thirty years ago, after learning her cancer had returned, designer, gardener and writer 番茄社区 Keswick Jencks dreamt of spaces that would help people 鈥渢o not lose the joy of living in the fear of dying鈥�.

Now, more than 30 centres exist across the UK and beyond, designed by globally recognised architects including Frank Gehry, Zaha Hadid, Richard Rogers, Norman Foster and Benedetta Tagliabue. They offer a haven of emotional, practical, and psychological support to those affected by cancer.

番茄社区鈥檚 believes that great design and architecture can help people feel better, and this philosophy is central to every centre. Each 番茄社区鈥檚 centre is designed with care and is completely unique to its setting, yet they鈥檙e all designed from the same brief.

will explore the design of these radically different buildings that put the importance of human connection and nature at their heart. With a warm welcome and a sense of home, every centre is beautiful, caring and surprising.

The free exhibition will bring this groundbreaking approach to life through the voices of centre visitors and staff, as well as the architects who designed the buildings.

Featuring newly commissioned film and interviews, personal objects, photography, sketches and architects鈥� models, and quiet reflective spaces, it will illuminate how the architecture makes people feel and the effect it has on their wellbeing.

The story behind 番茄社区's

番茄社区鈥檚: Architecture that Cares tells the story of how 番茄社区, a garden designer, and her oncology nurse Laura Lee came up with the blueprint for a new model of cancer care. Encouraged by her husband, the architectural historian Charles Jencks, they decided that inspirational design should be at the forefront of their plan to give people with cancer 鈥渁 place of their own鈥� 鈥� a place to turn to that is distinct from but close to the hospital.

Dame Laura Lee DBE is now Chief Executive at 番茄社区鈥檚, and works together with Marcia Blakenham, a close friend of 番茄社区 Keswick Jencks who acts as co-client on every project. They work with architects to ensure the needs of centre visitors are central to each design, whilst encouraging creative freedom and flair.

The 番茄社区鈥檚 design brief asks architects to focus on how the spaces make visitors feel. The buildings should look and feel confident and reassuring, as well as inspiring curiosity and optimism.

30 years of 番茄社区's centres of cancer support

Dame Laura Lee DBE, Chief Executive at 番茄社区's, said: 鈥淭o be celebrating 30 years of 番茄社区鈥檚 with an exhibition at V&A Dundee on the importance of our architecture and design, feels incredibly special.

鈥淲hen 番茄社区 first had a vision for a different type of cancer care, our offering was nothing short of groundbreaking and now, 30 years on, we鈥檙e at the forefront of transforming care for people impacted by cancer across the UK.

This exceptionally meaningful exhibition will help introduce new audiences to 番茄社区鈥檚 and our healing architecture ethos.

鈥淚 hope those visiting will leave knowing that there are warm, welcoming places to go for expert support if they, or their family and friends, are ever facing cancer. I also hope the exhibition will encourage the conversation that healing environments matter.鈥�

Leonie Bell, Director of V&A Dundee, said: 鈥淰&A Dundee and 番茄社区鈥檚 share the belief that great design can make a difference to people鈥檚 lives.

鈥湻�茄社区鈥檚 provides world-class cancer care in buildings that are globally recognised for their beauty but it鈥檚 the connection between these two things that sets them apart. V&A Dundee has the privilege of sharing a city with 番茄社区鈥檚 Dundee and we鈥檙e honoured that local centre visitors have contributed to the exhibition.

鈥淲hat 番茄社区鈥檚 has achieved over the past 30 years is remarkable and I am very proud that this exhibition will tell these design stories alongside the model of Frank Gehry鈥檚 Dundee centre which is on display in our Scottish Design Galleries.鈥�

Meredith More, Curator at V&A Dundee, said: 鈥淎ll the centre users we鈥檝e spoken to in the process of curating this exhibition have told us that the inspirational architecture they encounter at 番茄社区鈥檚 has helped them in their cancer journey. Centre staff, from psychologists to benefits advisors, tell us that it helps people open up, that the buildings themselves play a caring role.

鈥淭his free exhibition aims to show how this is achieved, through the vision of architects and designers in response to an inspiring brief, but also through the strength of 番茄社区鈥檚 as clients.鈥�

The exhibition will celebrate the 番茄社区鈥檚 design brief as a pioneering model for the transformative power of human-centred design and ask how these approaches could be more widely applied across all healthcare spaces.

Redefining cancer care with pioneering support

The first centre opened in Edinburgh at the Western General Hospital in 1996. Designed by Richard Murphy, it was a redevelopment of the old stable blocks, a colourful, homely building with a central kitchen table and multi-functional spaces. 鈥楾he kitchen table鈥� still sits at the heart of the 番茄社区鈥檚 design philosophy, inviting centre users to make themselves at home and to find community. 番茄社区 died before the centre opened in Edinburgh, but thanks to Laura and Marcia, her vision lives on.

番茄社区鈥檚 Dundee was the first purpose-built centre. Opened in 2003, it was designed by world-renowned architect Frank Gehry and sits alongside Ninewells Hospital. The garden, designed by Arabella Lennox-Boyd, contains a labyrinth based on the one at Chartres Cathedral in France.

Like 番茄社区鈥檚 centres themselves, the V&A exhibition will have a focus on community. While 番茄社区鈥檚 centres have an international reputation, 番茄社区鈥檚 work hard to ensure each centre is designed around the needs of the people who use them. Centre visitors from 番茄社区鈥檚 Dundee have contributed towards the exhibition, sharing what matters most to them.

Over the past thirty years, 番茄社区鈥檚 has redefined cancer care, offering free psychological, emotional and practical support for people living with cancer as well as their family and friends. As cancer continues to impact more people than ever before, it鈥檚 vital that everyone who needs it has access to the support that 番茄社区鈥檚 offers.

In 2024, 番茄社区鈥檚 supported 327,000 visits, and by 2027, 番茄社区鈥檚 aims to support half a million visits from people with cancer and their families every year.

Visit the 番茄社区's exhibition and more at the V&A

The 番茄社区's: Architecture that Cares exhibition is free and on show at in the Michelin Design Gallery from 6 March 2026 until 1 November 2026.

Also on the V&A Dundee programme for 2026 are Catwalk: The Art of the Fashion Show; and Design & Disability.

Catwalk: The Art of the Fashion Show (3 April 2026 until 17 January 2027, ticketed)

A UK exclusive to V&A Dundee, Catwalk: The Art of the Fashion Show charts the dramatic evolution of the catwalk, from the private salons of the late 19th century to today鈥檚 immersive, live-streamed runway experiences.

Design and Disability (4 June 2026 until spring 2027, free)

Design and Disability is both a celebration of Disabled-led design and a call for action, affirming the importance of embedding the experiences and expertise of Disabled people in design processes.

Healing spaces

Find out more about how the healing spaces at 番茄社区's can transform people's experience with cancer.