Sink Your Teeth Into Four Unique Dental Clinics

Why does hygiene have to be boring? Not only boring but often cold, uncomfortable and uninviting. Just a few things we’ve come to expect from places and spaces within the healthcare sector. Yes, there are rules and regulations in place to keep us safe and healthy, but a lot of these design formalities are also self-imposed conditions that limit imagination and, even worse—innovation.

Today, we look to some projects and designers who are challenging these norms. From examples that consider health through a well-being lens with fresh takes on sustainability to the downright eccentric, we cover all the bases.

Sink your teeth (boom boom) into four dental practices doing things a little differently below—and consider this your reminder for your annual check-up.

Photography by Niamh Barry.

Paste by Studio Author

Okay, first off, the name is killer. Yet beyond great branding, this boutique dental practice in Toronto does something few have thought of before—elevating a dental visit into a luxury affair. Whether you agree with the approach or not, Studio Author has designed a rich interior that transports you far away from the clinical and sometimes uncomfortable visit that may be about to unfold.

Taking a hospitality-inspired approach, limestone-clad interior walls are matched with a bold floor pattern of mixed natural stones. There’s oak panelling, a sculptural burl wood reception desk, Japanese paper-tiered pendant lighting and plush mohair walls—it’s opulent and indulgent and full disclosure surely not public healthcare. Inside the treatment rooms, oversized doors conceal the operating counter & equipment, further removing patients from the clinical practice. Luxurious and sexy, Paste takes on the wellness sector making a convincing case for a dental visit being self-care.

Four Dental Clinics Curated By Yellowtrace Studio Idya Unconventional Dental Practice Rennes France Photo Valentin Fougeray Yellowtrace 13

Photography by Valentin Fougeray.

Dental Practice in Rennes by Studio Idya

Offering a refreshing take on this often drab and stringent area of design, Danya Idilbi of Studio Idya reimagined a dental clinic through a residential lens. The studio looked to counter the aseptic and often maligned image of a dental practice by conceptualising it as a house or an apartment. Treatment rooms are designed as cosy bedrooms, the waiting room acts as a lounge room and the sterilisation room is imagined as an experimental bathroom.

Throughout the space, Danya utilised bright colours and 70s-inspired furniture. A walnut shade of timber warms up the entrance, while in the dentist’s lab, stainless steel is introduced in a space-age reference to the instruments used. White was curtailed for beige to soften the visual impact of the ensemble. Large glass brick walls and windows between rooms allow light to subtly seep in and the colour palette to blend cohesively while maintaining privacy for patients. A simple idea executed well, this dental practice challenges the norms of healthcare design, making the usually rigid and restrained spaces more accessible.

Four Dental Clinics Curated By Yellowtrace Digital Nikos Kouklakis Dental Center Yellowtrace 23

Four Dental Clinics Curated By Yellowtrace Digital Nikos Kouklakis Dental Center Yellowtrace 24

Four Dental Clinics Curated By Yellowtrace Digital Nikos Kouklakis Dental Center Yellowtrace 25

Four Dental Clinics Curated By Yellowtrace Digital Nikos Kouklakis Dental Center Yellowtrace 26

Photography by Nikos Kouklakis.

Digital Dental Center in Crete by Nikos Kouklakis

Tight, austere and refined, this digital dental centre by Studio Nikos Koukakis prioritises sustainability and flexibility—without losing its humour (see the novelty stainless steel entry door handle). Located in a former storage room of a 1970’s residential building in Crete, Nikos looked to create a functional space all while naturally integrating the traditional Cretan architectural style.

Fairly bare bones, a major feature of the space is its terrazzo flooring. Different colour marble chips were methodically inserted into a blue-coloured binder, creating a gradient soft transition from white to beige at the front to grey to black in the back of the space, a significant feature that visually unifies the entire space.

Furnishings consist of a timber kitchen, benches, desk and cabinet elements made by Vassilis Platsakis, that where possible were put on castors to allow for flexible use in the room. Simple and meticulously designed, the careful renovation facilitates future growth and adaptability to ever-changing dentistry requirements.

Four Dental Clinics Curated By Yellowtrace Raul Sanchez Architects Impress Valencia Dental Clinic Photo David Zarzoso Yellowtrace 30

Four Dental Clinics Curated By Yellowtrace Raul Sanchez Architects Impress Valencia Dental Clinic Photo David Zarzoso Yellowtrace 31

Photography by David Zarzoso.

Impress Milano Dental Clinic by Raul Sanchez Architects.

This genre-bending dentist office promises to make those bi-yearly visits a little more fun. Harnessing the surreal and fantastical, this fanciful interior by Raul Sanchez is breathtakingly original. With special geometry to consider and little access to natural light, the design proposes two curves that interplay with each other. Orientated along the length of the space, the curves meet close in the middle and apart on either side enclosing all functional spaces–dental boxes, sales spaces and toilets.

A raised space in the back is lined with red carpet and metal sheets of the same colour–a striking reference to Twin Peaks that sit in dramatic contrast to the white lacquered curves and pinewood fixtures. Pillars are treated with mirrors to erase the spatial barriers and add a dreamlike complexity through reflections. Diagonal blue and white designs cover the dental boxes while the sale area takes the same route as the stage, enveloped in floor-to-wall blue carpet and mass-coloured fibreboard furniture to match. This illusory interior drips with dreamlike visuals, heralding in Impress’ commitment to a new generation of dental clinics.