Context-driven design!

Compiled by Team IAnD 

Photography: Courtesy v2com

Read Time: 2 mins

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Multidisciplinary designer, Natasha Thorpe designs an open-concept orthodontics clinic, where the environment allows for a unique sensory experience that operates seamlessly and cohesively.

Natasha Thorpe specialises in total design environments and object design, designing every aspect in and of an environment, translating its collective meaning and symbolism into impactful design. 

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For this clinic too, she zeroes in a minimalist approach – in terms of colour, material, function and form as she juxtaposes a monochrome palette with a dull-gold-crème – both subdued – to create a soothing space. 

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Located within a commercial complex, Go Orthodontistes clinic is accessible by a long hallway, which serves as a passageway between the exterior commercial complex and the carefully crafted universe that lies within. The interior envelope is anointed with wood slats that inform all interventions and the open layout, with their curved surfaces revealing all, and mitigating confusion in favour of a candid openness.

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The open plan of the space naturally guides visitors, opening up the facility and almost instantaneously putting them at ease. The spatial configuration addresses notions of public or private spaces by the degree of material opacity and visibility depending on the vantage point. The long entrance corridor provides an opportunity to create essential storage space needed for a 1,943 sq. ft. office. One side of the hallway provides drawer storage for orthodontic appliances and the other, closet space. 

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Surfaces of walls and partitions are treated in varying degrees of opacity. From the waiting area, the clinic is visible just beyond the reception desk. Dental chairs in the treatment area are hinted at behind a bronze mesh and glass panel. Private areas, such as the consultation room, are fully opaque. In some areas, the laboratory and instrument sterilization centre are treated with transparent glass with a translucent white film applied in zones for clinicians to work in semi-privacy. 

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In designing a space focused on aesthetic transformation, colour connotations are critical, and the palette favours light natural tones. Cleanliness, purity, and comfort are paramount. The original concrete of the floor and columns is polished and left intact, preserving a link to the building structure. All interior surfaces are finished in BC Fir to give a cohesive feeling in an environment that might have otherwise felt claustrophobic. Variation and moments of drama are created through linear repetitions on walls and through finishes such as the Calacatta Oro marble. 

Materials are chosen for their durability, warmth to the touch, and ease of maintenance. Customized sinks in Corian create cohesion with the clean linearity of the space, while light fixtures, which abstractly spell “Go,” the family name of the doctors, create a highly visual experience. 

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Built-in furniture abounds. No seat is turned with its back to the entrance, which reduces apprehension. Long overlapping low tables allow for customized configuration and can be tucked one under the other to create more space. The satin finish of the wood captures natural light and LED under-lighting calls attention to the benches’ geometry, creating dimension. The reception desk is treated as a space without the constraint of enclosures; as the notion of separating functions and privacy are addressed with the varying heights of the desk’s low-walled perimeters. 

Go Orthodontistes Clinic Brossard was the recipient of three awards during the 11th edition of the Grands Prix du Design. The prizes were awarded for: valorization of wood in industrial and product design, residential commercial or integrated design products in small series, and for a health office or clinic. 

Fact File:

Project: Go Orthodontistes Brossard Clinic 

Client: Go Orthodontistes 

Design: Natasha Thorpe

Size: 1943 square feet

Location: Brossard, QC, Canada