The Gardens Care Home / Marge Arkitekter
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Text description provided by the architects. The design for “Gardens” has its background in contemporary research that indicates elderly people’s well-being in care centers is strongly correlated with attractive green outdoor environments and social interaction. Therefore, important parameters in our spatial design were to arrange comfortable homes for the elderly with easy access to their own gardens, outdoor spaces, and shared facilities.
The two-story building proposal made it possible for them to enter gardens directly on the ground level of atrium courtyards or through the generous roof terraces on the second floor. From inside the elderly have visual contact with the courtyard gardens through large window sections. This increases the sense of security and encourages their willingness to explore the outdoor environment and interact with others. Around corridors and individual room units, we created visitor centers, common facilities, and shared spaces to strengthen the sense of belonging and participation – a fundamental feeling of not being alone.
We mean that this way of organizing interior spaces for the elderly is essential for dynamic social interaction between residents, staff, relatives, and others. The facades facing the atrium courtyards have robust and durable wood paneling which is low-maintenance and has a low environmental impact. This together with different landscape arrangements of trees, water, and plants in the courtyards creates an intimate and gentle atmosphere with engaging qualities.
The exterior of the building faces large-scale local industrial buildings, forests, and agricultural landscapes and is covered with fiber cement patterns. The pattern has different colors and shades corresponding with the bright tones of the surrounding green fields. The facade’s expression resembles a textile cross stitch embroidered border that runs around the building.
The care center, therefore, has an exterior with a clear identity in a diversified environment and a monastery-like inner organization with tactile and sensible atrium courtyards. The building’s unique profile in an ordinary everyday context makes the architectural design a symbol of an attractive and safe living environment for the elderly.
