Dezeen Magazine

Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic by Hironaka Ogawa

An uncompromising grid of square rooms and courtyards makes up this dental clinic in Gunma, Japan, in our third story in the last week from architect Hironaka Ogawa (+ slideshow).

Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic by Hironaka Ogawa

A total of 55 squares give the building its rectangular plan. Large square doorways open rooms out to one another, creating a layering of spaces that can be used in various configurations.

Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic by Hironaka Ogawa

Ten square courtyards are dotted around the building and are visible through square windows that match the proportions of the doorways.

Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic by Hironaka Ogawa

"While aiming for a functional and rational plan, I encountered ambiguous relationships between outside and inside conditions that generated a mysterious depth in the space," explains Hironaka Ogawa. "The diversity in light and space was created unintentionally by the 55 cells inside of the structure."

Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic by Hironaka Ogawa

Three treatment rooms sit in a row through the centre of the grid, while offices and waiting rooms run along either side. The flexibility of this layout allows for more treatment rooms to be added at a later date.

Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic by Hironaka Ogawa

The roof of the building pitches upwards towards one end to create a variety of ceiling heights.

Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic by Hironaka Ogawa

"One can experience diverse feelings in each and every space because of the dissimilarities in each cell's heights, natural lighting and volume," adds the architect.

Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic by Hironaka Ogawa

A two-storey residence is also included in the building and sits beneath the peak of the roof. Here, rooms wrap around an additional rectangular courtyard.

Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic by Hironaka Ogawa

Hironaka Ogawa set up his studio in 2005. His projects include a wedding chapel in Gunma and a house with trees inside in Kagawa.

Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic by Hironaka Ogawa

See more dental surgeries on Dezeen, including a clinic filled with stripy glass screens.

Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic by Hironaka Ogawa

Photography is by Daici Ano.

Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic by Hironaka Ogawa

Here's the full project description from Hironaka Ogawa:


Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic

This is a dental clinic accompanied with a housing project.

Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic by Hironaka Ogawa

The conditions required were: to make the clinic and housing into one building, to create three individual treatment rooms and a couple of rooms that are able to alter into treatment rooms in the future for the clinic, and to provide the treatment area wide spread feelings while keeping its privacy.

Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic by Hironaka Ogawa

For the housing section, the client wanted to have a pleasant view of the sky. Other than these conditions, locating openings also needed particular attention in order to maintain enough natural lighting levels in the building; the site suffers from strong winter wind and is famous for the hottest temperature record in Japan during the summer.

Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic by Hironaka Ogawa

First of all, I made a rule to create a 2.7m x 2.7m cell that is needed for the individual treatment area. I placed the cells in grid inside of a walled box and located a couple of courtyards to get sunlight while considering their relations to each cell.

Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic by Hironaka Ogawa

By doing so, fifty-five cells were created on the plane. I let the building be seen as one volume by employing a hip roof and laid the second floor of the housing in the hipped or inclined section.

Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic by Hironaka Ogawa

The clinic and a part of the housing have different ceiling heights created by the slanted roof, and the courtyards' varying depth creates natural light gradations. Therefore, there would be diversities in spaces.

Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic by Hironaka Ogawa

The plan is fairly ruled by a 2.7m grid. However, one can experience diverse feelings in each and every space because of the dissimilarities in each cell's heights, natural lighting and volume.

Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic by Hironaka Ogawa

While aiming for a functional and rational plan, I encountered ambiguous relationships between outside and inside conditions that generated a mysterious depth in the space. The diversity in light and space was created unintentionally by the fifty-five cells inside of the structure.

Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic by Hironaka Ogawa

Above: site plan - click for larger image

Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic by Hironaka Ogawa

Above: ground floor plan - click for larger image

Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic by Hironaka Ogawa

Above: first floor plan - click for larger image

Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic by Hironaka Ogawa

Above: section one - click for larger image

Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic by Hironaka Ogawa

Above: section two - click for larger image

Chiyodanomori Dental Clinic by Hironaka Ogawa

Above: exploded isometric - click for larger image