Add Passion And Stir

Architecture and design affect your attitude, your health, and even your life. Architect Michael Murphy, executive director of MASS Design Group, and Ken Oringer, one of Boston’s most notable chefs and restaurateurs, talk to Billy Shore about how good design can drive systems change. “We see architecture as a crucial piece … of our daily lives and as a systems approach to how we live either more productive or less productive lives,” says Murphy. Oringer knows the importance of design in his restaurants. “We work 16-hour days, and you have to create an environment that can make everybody happy … and inspire creativity,” he says. Murphy describes a hospital his group designed for a village in Rwanda that had to address tuberculosis. Because TB spreads through the air, they had to mitigate risk by designing better ventilation, creating outdoor waiting areas, and eliminating hallways. “A hospital is an incredible system… but it’s only successful if we’ve designed it well enough to influence medical policy on how