Hyangsimjae by 100A associates

WELLBEING

Stefan Wolf Lucks

Designed by Berghain architects STUDIO KARHARD, THE URBAN DENTIST aims to attract dentophobic millennials for their annual check-ups

Colourful upholstered seating and a backlit glass wall make up the clinic’s waiting area.

Above The centre’s bold theme is maintained within the individual treatment rooms with their bright pink cabinets and brass accents contrasting the dark linoleum floor.

Opposite The dark terrazzo reception desk and orange tinted mirrors uphold the clinic’s daring theme, while exposed concrete ceilings and air ducts recall Berlin’s industrial inspired nightclubs.

BERLIN — Going to the dentist’s office is never a pleasant experience and in Germany, people aged 25 to 34 lagged behind other age groups by six to seven per cent in visiting a dental clinic, according to a 2014 Eurostat survey. Undeterred, three young dentists based in Europe’s party capital decided that the best way to encourage their peers was to engage studio karhard, the designers of the legendary Berghain nightclub. ‘They wanted to make the patients feel comfortable and fearless,’ says studio’s co-founder Thomas Karsten. Eschewing the clinical, all-white aesthetic, the space feels more like a concept store or a bar than somewhere to get a root canal. The architects’ choices of materials and furnishings – black linoleum floor, a blocky terrazzo reception desk and dusky pink upholstered seating in the waiting room – fully support the design intent. Orange tinted mirrors behind the reception add to the bold colour palette, but also conceal the more mundane offices located behind them. Exposed concrete columns, ceilings and air-ducts are reminiscent of Berlin’s industrial inspired nightclubs, as are the U-channel glass walls with integrated programmable lighting. Even the cabinets within the individual treatment rooms have received a glamorous makeover with brass accents and pastel colours. Visiting the dentist may never be a party, but this is as close as it gets.