A boutique hotel-style dental clinic

The Bègles neighbourhood of Bordeaux, an area undergoing extensive urban redevelopment, is home to a recently opened dental clinic that aims to set a new standard of dental care: the Le Belem dental centre.
The owner of the clinic, Centre Dentaire VDF, wanted to offer its new clientele a bright, welcoming space that would combine the comfort of a wellness centre with the style of a hotel. To achieve this goal, the interior design project was awarded to the Paris-based practice Carmin Architecture Interieure. In the words of architect Tristan Dorthy, the firm “followed a design philosophy aimed at creating a new centre inspired by the stylistic criteria of hotels and wellness centres. With this in mind, we created a warm, luminous design project that would be ideal for a space devoted to medical care.”
The project for the 270-square-metre medical centre adopted two parallel approaches. The first was to develop a clear aesthetic concept and make design choices conducive to a comfortable and welcoming environment for patients, while the second was more closely connected with the function of the space and the need to ensure compliance with specific hygiene criteria. Tristan Dorthy continues: “To meet the hygienic and medical needs of the centre, we chose to work with durable materials such as ceramic, glass, metal and resin. But unlike the approach normally adopted in the majority of anonymous healthcare facilities, we opted to use rougher and more textural materials such as solid wood, technical fabrics, wall coverings and plasterboard to create warm and relaxing spaces.”
The materials, particularly porcelain tiles, represent the point of contact between these two different design approaches. “We made extensive use of porcelain tiles due to the intrinsic qualities of the material, particularly their unique combination of aesthetics, ease of installation and durability. Following extensive research into different lines and brands, we opted for the Arkistone range from Marca Corona, which allowed us to experiment with slabs of different sizes and colours to accentuate the perspectives and geometries of the spaces.”
Soft neutral colours and distinctive textures are used to define the various spaces, with special attention to stone-effect surfaces, 4D cladding and creative solutions, such as the use of metal inserts incorporated into the tiling in the bathrooms.
The lighting design made skilful use of both natural and artificial light sources and played an important role in enhancing the surface coverings. The reflections from the three-dimensional surfaces help to create the warm, cosy atmosphere sought by both the client and the designers.