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Architects: ACR arquitetos associados, noak studio
- Area: 400 m²
- Year: 2022
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Photographs:Carolina Lacaz
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Manufacturers: Arkos, DE LAZZARI E PATIO BRASIL, Hunter Douglas, Luxatec, Serge Ferrari
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Lead Architects: André Honda, Antonio Carlos Rodrigues, Leonardo Navarro, Larissa Nakagawa, Rafael Tozo, Rodolfo Friestino
Text description provided by the architects. The design concept for the new “Alice Saúde” unit is based on the brand's initial premise: spaces connected with nature and divided into primary pillars of health, such as body, mind, sleep, and food. The challenge, in this case, was to develop the necessary program in a compact and vertical version, very different from the flagship unit. The guideline of the offices, ACR Arquitetos Associados and Noak Studio, hired for the development of the project, was to emphasize the original structure of the building, evidencing the installation of the new infrastructure necessary for the operation of a health space, also in an apparent way. This goes back to another foundation of the startup: transparency. “Casa Alice” is a space without hierarchies, it is democratic and transparent, elaborate and at the same time unpretentious.
For the facade, the architectural proposal was already consolidated as a brand concept, and a bioclimatic membrane was installed – which brings privacy and greater energy efficiency in the use of natural lighting, without excessive heat gain in the internal spaces. At dusk, the clinic turns into a box of light to the outside, which creates a game between full and empty. Internal solar screens were installed, which can be opened and closed according to the needs of users and doctors, providing greater privacy during exams.
The entrance portico, another iconic element of the brand proposed by the architecture, was placed in the corner of the property, highlighting the insertion in a corner. The program's implementation strategy was to allocate the rooms peripherally, ensuring that they all had a view and natural lighting. This arrangement gave rise to a central atrium, highlighted by the zenith lighting. In this way, all environments and spaces are naturally lit from all sides, bringing to the new unit the same concept of visual permeability approached in the flagship, where, through a central courtyard, it is possible to visualize all levels of the project with a panoramic view of the house.
This central void proposed in the architectural project brought the interesting opportunity to also use it as a space. A linear bench takes the place of the guardrail and can be used to wait or talk, a horizontal hammock is attached to it on the upper floor, making it a pleasant place to stay. On the ground floor, the woodwork bench hides the magenta metal railing of the central atrium. These solutions completely modified the spatial perception, providing greater visual amplitude and maximizing the available area. “Casa Alice” was designed with spaces that do not look like traditional offices and laboratories but feel at home, which makes face-to-face consultations and exams a different experience from what is usually offered. The entire specification of materiality, combined with spatial quality, guarantees the project the necessary tone for every member to identify that Alice has unique and different processes. At Alice, the spaces were designed as they should be: to breathe health.
