Fran Silvestre Arquitectos, established in 2005, develops international projects ranging from residential and cultural to institutional and public in Europe, the United States, and Russia. It is part of the office’s idea that the project must adapt to its location and environment by paying attention to the economics and avoiding luxury, regardless of the size of the budget.
The strategy for each project is the product of a negotiation between two opposing needs- the requirement to offer a technical response to a specific environment and the desire to find beauty in the produced work, pursuing the pleasure of those involved in its development. Throughout its professional experience, the company has dealt with a wide range of structures. They emphasize the use of innovation through the use of new materials and technologies that improve people’s life.
In the center of the city, a structure constructed around the turn of the 20th century houses the 74-square-meter dental clinic. Comfort, individualized patient care, and clinical requirements are all highly valued in the current design, which has been included in the clinic’s layout. Fran Silvestre Arquitectos explores refinement via restrained design and stark contrasts in the interiors of this dentist clinic in Valencia.
Design Philosophy and Planning | Fran Silvestre Arquitectos
The idea was developed in response to a new clinic whose guiding principles focused on giving the patient a highly individualized level of treatment. A satisfying, comfortable, and therapeutic ambiance often proves to be the key point for the success of a dental clinic. The layout of the structure, chosen at the turn of the previous century, had an impact on the distribution. When the project originally began, the crew had to deal with a challenging internal layout.
The floor plan of the structure, which was designed around the start of the 20th century, is shaped like a long rectangle with an isosceles triangle affixed to one end. To compensate for the imbalance, the architects built offices on one side of the foyer and positioned treatment rooms on the other. This kind of space management leaves a tunnel connecting the two volumes that leads to the clinic’s back entrance. The uneven space is fixed with the entry hall, creating an unusual spatial effect. The entry hall structures the ad hoc layout and offers an intriguing sense of space. The room displays the Fran Silvestre hallmark monochromatic palette, clear geometry, ornamentation-free décor, and efficient utility, in keeping with the firm’s distinctive design aesthetic.
Colour Scheme
The color scheme of Valencia’s CLI Dental Clinic is imaginative throughout. The sparkling medical equipment’s brilliant whiteness glows increasingly strongly in the all-grey environment. The design company Fran Silvestre Arquitectos was able to emphasize the mise-en-scène of dental medicine and reinterpret its typological interior design as an extension of professional activity because of the monochromatic palette. The color palette lets the patient focus more on the treatment without getting anxious or stressed.
Even though the walls are painted and varnished, the cladding is made of lacquered panels, and the seating textiles offer texture to the otherwise monochromatic room, the grey interior gives the impression that it is made of a single, homogeneous material. As visitors enter the clinic through the peculiarly curved entry hall, slim room-spanning light fixtures provide dramatic accent lighting and act as a way-finding guide.
Fran Silvestre Arquitectos skillfully modified a challenging floor layout and used color strategically to sell the office’s dentistry program. The studio’s continuous pavement matched the color of the walls, floor, and ceiling.
Material Palette
Fran Silvestre Arquitectos decided to keep the colors of the walls, floor, and ceiling the same. The monochrome palette of grey fixtures and surfaces gives the Valencian dental clinic in the center of the city a serene ambiance. The material tone is established using lacquered wood, a solid surface countertop, and a gypsum board with a water-matte enamel finish.
The architects purposely chose dark grey tones to contrast with the dental care equipment, which was positioned as the room’s main activity hub. The studio’s innovative continuous ribbon-like band, which serves as a seat here and a counter there while running continuously across the space, is used in the design to harmonize the color of all the surfaces-wall, floor, and ceiling.
Creation of a Therapeutic Encounter | Fran Silvestre Arquitectos
The strong light adds brightness and character to the space by purposely contrasting it with the gloomy grey tones. The dental care instruments, which stand out as the protagonists, are brought into sharp focus by the surrounding contradiction.
The environment unquestionably has a significant influence on the patient’s psychological well-being. A tranquil atmosphere that relieves tension and anxiety is created by the interior’s darkness and muted tones, which results in a satisfying therapeutic encounter. The balance of space, shape, and material, where the built and unbuilt mix perfectly to engage the user in a sensory experience, lends the environment a subtle beauty.
References:
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Archello. (n.d.). Fran Silvestre Arquitectos designs monochrome dental clinic in Valencia. [online] Available at: https://archello.com/news/fran-silvestre-arquitectos-designs-monochrome-dental-clinic-in-valencia [Accessed 26 Oct. 2022].
Anon, (n.d.). Dental Clinic by Fran Silvestre Arquitectos – aasarchitecture. [online] Available at: https://aasarchitecture.com/2020/02/dental-clinic-by-fran-silvestre-arquitectos/ [Accessed 28 Oct. 2022].
Fran Silvestre Arquitectos. (n.d.). Dental clinic. [online] Available at: https://fransilvestrearquitectos.com/en/projects/dental-clinic/ [Accessed 28 Oct. 2022].
DesignOnWeb. (n.d.). Dental clinic in the centre of Valencia. Dark grey interior. [online] Available at: https://www.arkitectureonweb.com/en/web/designonweb/-/dental-clinic-in-the-centre-of-valencia-dark-grey-interior [Accessed 28 Oct. 2022].
Hira, S. (n.d.). An aesthetic drama of minimal design and stark contrasts. [online] Available at: http://globalhop.indiaartndesign.com/2020/02/an-aesthetic-drama-of-minimal-design.html [Accessed 28 Oct. 2022].