In the Zone

Good design communicates the pathways that exist in a space and offers clues regarding where to go next. The Foundation Architects uses visual cues like curved walls and pathways and smartly scaled entrances to help guide both adult and young dental patients to the next area—helping them feel at ease in an environment that might generally be associated with anxious feelings. Visual cues like short walls also can cozy up and define an area of a clinic without closing it off.

Here’s a peak at some of these solutions designed into dental clinics by The Foundation Architects.

Welcome Reception
A reception desk with a curved frame welcomes patients of Siverson Dental Care (below) to the clinic. The wall opposite the reception desk also curves—creating a natural pathway that leads patients to a comfortable seating area after they check in.

Chanhassen Family Dental (above) also uses a curved brick wall—and a warm fireplace—to guide patients to the seating area. Patients at these clinics are sure to be in the right frame of mind when the hygienist calls their name.

Child’s Play
Lakeland Family Dental caters to children’s comforts as well. The reception area (below) sports a play area fully equipped with soft floors and a pint-sized entrance.

Smile Designers (left) is home to a brightly colored kids’ area that’s partially screened off from the main area—which allows parents to keep an eye on their young ones having fun. Both spaces are great for children to let off some extra energy before their appointment.









Privacy for Patients
Patients appreciate privacy, but smart design will prevent them from feeling isolated during treatment—enhancing their overall experience. At Woodbury Dental Arts (below), carefully positioned floor-to-ceiling cabinetry and three-quarter-sized “walls” (with frosted panes on top) are just what the dentist ordered.

View more spaces designed by The Foundation.

Medal-Worthy Architecture

Long after Olympic athletes return to their home countries, the buildings that housed them and their sports stand as a reminder to the inhabitants and tourists to the host city. Whether those structures (stadiums, sports complexes and living quarters) are viewed in a positive light depends much on their look and use in the years to come. Here’s a look at some notable structures from past Olympics.

Canada House

Photo courtesy City Caucus via Flickr

Designed by Vancouver’s most renowned architect Arthur Erickson, Canada House was home to the Canadian men’s hockey team during the 2010 Olympics. Two years after the games ended, the units in the building sold for $1.3 to $6 million. The building looks nothing like the others around it with its angled balconies and zigzagged metal panels. Reflected light on the building turns it gold at times.

Montjuïc Municipal Pool

The Barcelona pool was the stage for the diving and water polo events at the 1992 summer Olympics. Originally built in 1929, this public pool has captivated locals and visitors alike with its stunning panoramic view of the city for almost a century. Scott Manson from the Guardian calls it “the world’s best swimming pool”. Its rock star location wowed Kylie Minogue who used the pool as the setting for a recent music video.


 Laoshan Velodrome

Photo courtesy Flickr

Designed by Schuermann Architects for the 2008 winter games in Beijing, the Laoshan Velodrome hosts national and international cycling competitions—and fencing competitions—today. With its striking dome-shaped roof, this multifunctional structure is also aesthetically pleasing.

Let’s keep the conversation going! What are some of your favorite (and least favorite) Olympic structures? We’d love to hear from you.

High-Design Privacy

We recently discussed how intuitive architecture is designed to divide buildings and spaces into zones that provide cues and invite comfort.

Another important aspect of design is privacy. Let’s examine a few projects completed by The Foundation that strike a great balance between privacy and engagement:

The Foundation Architects remodeled the CBS Radio in Minneapolis. We integrated windows with glass of varying degrees of transparency and opaqueness to open up some areas and create privacy without isolation in others. 

The newsroom of the studio (pictured above), once completely hidden, is now visible from the lobby to showcase the hub of this busy radio station. Colored glass panels combined with reeded glass obscure the view from the hallway to create privacy in the new green room (pictured below) for visiting celebrities.

Take a look at our project for Siverson Dental:

Each treatment area feels private but also feels connected to the whole clinic, so patients don’t feel isolated.

This hygiene area of Lakeland Family Dental (above) also provides privacy without feeling too enclosed.

The independent screened appointment desks at Smile Designers are a stylish approach to providing added comfort and privacy for patients.

View other unique solutions from The Foundation Architects' commercial architecture portfolio.