Community Therapy Center

This object is designed to be universal, suitable for every person, regardless of their origin, religion or political views. It is supposed to unite people, not to divide. For this reason, the project does not refer to any ethnic group, the architecture is supposed to result from nature and surroundings.         

The project should include elements drawing attention to issues related to the care of the environment. The city streets are littered with plastic that has been included in project. It uses recycled plastics. 

Each building has a different function. The area has been divided into areas of integration and solitude. In the middle of the site there is a garden with water reservoirs, it is a space conducive to relax and reflection.  

The designed environment should give you a sense of security. The introduction of water and greenery will make this place user-friendly. The participants of the therapy, thanks to the possibility of introducing sculptures made of recycled plastic, can interfere into the space they are in. This treatment is to provide them with a sense of comfort similar to what they feel at home. 

Functions required in the project, such as a meeting place, music therapy or individual therapy, were divided into two groups.  The first group consists of buildings of felinotherapy, individual therapy and a garden. These are functions that require privacy and silence. So it was necessary to separate them from the noise-generating functions. Especially in the case of individual therapy, where sensitive conversations are held, a place should be created isolated from the rest of the complex so that users feel comfortable. The second group included music therapy, art therapy, a meeting place, multi-functional rooms and a reception. Their role is to integrate users, so they should be placed next to each other, creating a place conducive to conversations. The plot has been divided into two zones - the integration zone at the entrance and the solitude zone, located on the southern part of the complex. This treatment aims to create a lively place, full of conversations and unity, and a second place where it is possible to cut off from the environment and reflect in solitude. 

The main axis of communication connects the above-mentioned groups. After the described division, individual functions were arranged on the plot. Due to the fact that the facility is located in the suburbs of the city among single-family houses, the development on the plot has been dispersed. Each function received its own building. Thanks to this, the entire complex harmonizes with the surroundings. 

The color of the walls is reminiscent of nature. It is close to the color of clay, making the buildings blend in with the surroundings. Some objects have openwork walls. Wooden elements are designed in a distinctive color, which gives the complex its character. The main assumption in the design of the facade was to maintain harmony and reduce unnecessary details. 

The project has ecological solutions aimed at making users aware of the problems related to littering the environment. In the garden there are sculptures made of recycled plastic inspired by works by Robert Bradford or Ocean Sole. Such sculptures can be created by patients at the artistic therapy, which is located next to the garden. 

One of the walls of the northern building where the multi-purpose room is located is made of plastic bottles. The first layer consists of bottles filled with cement, each subsequent layer with sand. There are 100 bottles per 1 m2 of the wall. Such walls are waterproof and fireproof. This solution will give new life to bottles collected from the streets. By involving the local community to create this structure, you can not only show them how to build it, but also make the place less foreign to them, because they have added their "brick", or in this case, a plastic bottle. Solution inspired by Eco-Tec. 

Lastico made of recycled plastic found its place at the reception. The colors refer to the sculptures in the garden. This solution is inspired by the Polish project Ace & Tate x Plasticiet. 

The entrance area is on the west side of the site. The entrance to the reception desk is stressed by a roof. To the north of the reception area, there are two multifunction rooms that can be connected if necessary. You can organize art workshops, integration meetings and meditation classes there. To the left of the entrance there is a square serving as a meeting place. There you can sit on a bench surrounding a tree and wait for therapy while talking with other patients.  

Passing through the reception desk we come across two buildings - artistic therapy and music therapy. There is a shaded space between them, which is another space conducive to integration between users.  

The toilets are located between the garden and the main entrance, thanks to which the distance to each object is similar.  

In the western part of the plot there is a building intended for felinotherapy. Such therapy consists in working with cats, which support pharmacological treatment in the case of mental illnesses, alleviate anxiety and reduce the feeling of loneliness. Felinotherapy can be combined with other therapies like with artistic therapy. The building has an entrance area, a therapy room, a room for animals and backroom.  

The southern part of the area is built-up with a staff room and rooms for individual therapy. An important part of the project is the contact between the garden and the building intended for individual therapy. There are zones in which users are covered with bamboo partitions on which the roof rests. Swinging in a hammock, surrounded by greenery and the sound of water, they can calm down before or after the therapy. This space is intended for reflection and helps prepare for the interview with a psychotherapist. Sitting in the therapy room, we have a view of the greenery, which gives a sense of privacy and separation from the rest of the complex.  

Communication of the entire assumption is carried out outside. The longest stretch, from the entrance area to the staff building and individual therapy rooms, is shaded by bamboo mats. It is the main communication axis from which we have access to the car park, garden, toilets and art and music therapy buildings.