Ten Kerselaere Residential Care Middle / Atelier Kempe Thill
Amidst the fields. In 2013 Atelier Kempe Thill received along with Daniel van Doorslaer an invited competitors for the development of a brand new retirement residence within the small rural city of Heist-op-den-Berg in Flanders, Belgium. The duty requested the substantial extension (c. 120 new residential models) of an present senior housing heart from the Nineteen Seventies. The proposed idea was a grasp plan with 4 elongated city villas in an open and car-free park. This concept performs on the one hand with the small-scale and rural context of the encircling space, whereas emphasizing the horizontal character of the Flemish panorama with its two to three-story buildings. However, the grasp plan permits a step-by-step implementation with an inexpensive diploma of architectural freedom for every constructing. Every city villa intends its design to serve the precise wants of its goal group and implements the probabilities of the out there finances and the design funding tips. The ensuing grasp plan displays and divulges with its differentiated “care panorama for the aged” the social complexity of senior care within the twenty-first century.
A house with an atrium and winter gardens. The primary realized constructing mission is a residential advanced of 36 help flats all accessible with wheelchairs. All residences are designed as two-room flats of c. 62 m2 with open kitchens and an axial dimension of seven,20 m. Bigger three-room flats are located in any respect corners of the constructing. All flats have 7 m large winter gardens, permitting the inhabitants to make use of their balconies all yr spherical. The constructing itself may be very compact, and all ranges might be accessed via two staircases and one elevator. All residences are linked by galleries within the atrium, which generously present daylight to the entire constructing. The brightness of the house enhances the social interplay between the residents. An open kitchen in it should remodel the atrium within the heart of the “care villa”, and it’ll then develop into the symbol of the resident’s group. The obtained constructing typology is remarkably compact, with greater than 28 m depth on the quick aspect. These are ultimate circumstances for a price-efficient development, offering the best high quality to the residents with a thrifty use of means.
Exhausting and gentle. Excessive-quality prefabricated concrete parts characterize the looks of the brand new residence. The massive anthracite-colored façade elements are fabricated from white concrete blended with black pigment combination, moreover polished and hydrophobized. The winter gardens façade consists of 1,80 m large story-high sliding glass parts in slim darkish gray anodized aluminum frames. The façade on the within of the winter backyard has a gray plaster end and darkish gray anodized aluminum home windows. Giant sliding home windows are positioned on the pinion of the constructing. In consequence, the façade is powerful and low-maintenance that completely matches the humid maritime local weather of Flanders. The darkish shade of the entire is a delic
ate reference to the context and makes the recent inexperienced of the environment stand out stronger. The façade varieties a impartial backdrop, revealing the residents’ actions on their balconies and thus participating in the entire architectural expertise. A robust distinction with the skin characterizes the within of the constructing. The atrium is vibrant and flooded with daylight. All flooring are set with sand-colored tiles, and all railings are fabricated from stable glass. On the second flooring, a glass firewall goes across the atrium and makes the inside seem as ethereal and open as potential. The doorway doorways of the residences had been specifically designed with nice love in stable oak for this mission. The result’s a really homely ambiance.
Preferrred prototype. The mission was realized with the usual finances for retirement properties in Flanders. The very compact and industrially produced typology has a minimal façade floor and growth. On high of that, the constructing companies had been designed with a purpose to omit as a lot as potential suspended ceilings, and lengthy piping runs. This manner, the architects may add qualities corresponding to intensive winter gardens and a communal atrium to the constructing, enabling a really high-quality materialization. From the viewpoint of Atelier Kempe Thill, these qualities match very effectively the wants of the residents, making this residence the proper prototype for this constructing task.
