Week 8 - Restorative Design

At this stage of our NEXT projects, we are making furniture choices for our clinic, experimenting with possible furniture arrangements, and beginning to think more seriously about material choices. I decided to find an article that focuses on how design choices can positively affect the people in your space – Steelcase’s article “Restoration Office” does just that. Unlike what the name suggests, this article covers many basic design ideas to promote wellbeing, not just ideas for the office.

Natural Color Palette

Steelcase researchers discovered that the presence of nature in the workplace could lead to healthier outcomes for the people who work there. These biophilic design elements lead to emotional, cognitive, and physical wellbeing, as well as overall productivity, happiness, stress reduction, learning, and healing. Because biophilic designs lead to such positive outcomes, we should focus on designing our interiors in such a way as to trick the brain into thinking it is in a natural environment through the use of patterns and textures that inherently make us feel good.

Natural Color Palette and Materials

There are four facets of the human experience with nature that can, and should, be integrated into our designs – sensory richness, natural rhythms and signals, challenges in nature, and local distinctiveness. Sensory richness occurs in environments that layer color, pattern, and texture to create an interesting, engaging space. It is also seen in environments that use natural shapes and materials or objects, such as hexagons, spirals, spikes, and spheres while also incorporating live elements such as plants. Natural rhythms and signals are seen in environments that rely on natural light, or at least technology to adequately simulate it, as well as spaces with good air flow to provide a sense of climate and freshness. Challenges in nature can occur in a space that encourages creativity in solving problems in order to build teamwork as well as cognitive and perceptive skills. Finally, local distinctiveness is very important in designing interior spaces, because it is necessary to celebrate locally distinctive features through the use of local natural colors and materials. These local elements help create community within the workplace.

Geometric Patterns Representing Nature

The design and layout of our NEXT clinic is very important to the wellbeing of both the patient and the clinician, but codes and other regulations also play a huge role in wellbeing, as well. The health, safety, and welfare of individuals who occupy this space is very important, and that is why topics such as egress and ADA accessibility are necessary research points for the layout of this clinic. Patients come first, so since the beginning of my design, I have ensured that all types of patients, from those in wheelchairs to able-bodied individuals, can maneuver through my clinic easily. These design elements include all doorways being at least three feet wide, all hallways being at least five feet wide, and all exam, consult, acupuncture, and massage rooms having an open center to promote easy navigation.