Clark Nexsen Project Featured in Architectural Record Healthcare Issue: Blue Ridge Orthodontics
Clark Nexsen’s design for Blue Ridge Orthodontics is featured in Architectural Record’s (AR) 2019 Health Care Issue. Owner Dr. Luke Roberts commissioned Clark Nexsen to design a flagship treatment and administrative space for his growing practice. Miriam Sitz, AR senior editor, describes the design of the new office in Asheville, North Carolina, as “presenting clients with a calm, soothing environment that highlights the region’s beauty.”
The firm delivered a 7,500-square-foot L-shaped building that frames views of the verdant landscape while separating patient areas from the new business office that serves Roberts’s three locations.
Clark Nexsen project architect Dorothea Schulz is quoted in the AR story: “A very early image for me was of being out on a porch. If you have the feeling that you’re outside,” she continues, “then your orthodontist appointment is less of a chore—actually, a very relaxing experience.”
Roberts sees the design as a modern reinterpretation of the historic visitor centers that dot the Blue Ridge Parkway. “Building something on the main road in Asheville, I wanted to contribute to the community, not just put up something quick,” he says.
The article focuses on the use of natural materials, where a “striking curved ribbon wall picks up on the warm tones” and defines the lobby and practice spaces with as much functionality as possible in the wall. “We wanted to incorporate any kind of function that we could along the way,” Schulz is quoted in the article. “The wall became this very malleable element.”