24 BUILD Q4 2022 Aug22492 Working with some of the most vulnerable in our society requires an eye for innovation. As specialists in the field of humanist architecture, the team at Karlsson Architects have designed some amazing projects for those who need help the most. In BUILD’s rolling series of Design and Build Awards, the team were named Best for Diverse Innovative Architectural Designs, 2022 – Copenhagen. We caught up with Christian Karlsson to find out more. or homeless people, the mentally ill, those who are elderly or those who are young and in care, a new approach to design is needed. With an attitude that places those who need help most at the heart of what they do, the team behind Karlsson Architects have been able to create new ideas that have the potential to change the status quo of an entire industry. When we caught up with Christian, he wanted to explain what has driven this unique goal. “Our ambition is to create efficient and exciting architecture through an emphatic and visionary counselling process,” he explains. “For the client this means an explicit and goal-oriented collaboration and a satisfying result – always better than expected!” This direct approach has brought about some stunning ideas that might not otherwise have been considered by others. Since opening their doors, Karlsson Architects has become a valued consultant on projects internationally. The team’s influence has been seen in recent mental hospitals and dementia care centres in Scandinavia, and the firm has attracted a great interest from clients from North America, Middle East and the EU. “Due to the nature of the projects, we mostly work with public clients such as Municipalities, Regions, Ministries and welfare projects,” Christian tells us, “but also private developers depending on the financing model and project type.” The success of this innovative approach is due entirely to the methods employed by the team to find work. “We seek out projects and collaborations with experts who understand the unique problems in healthcare,” Christian says with a smile. “Together, we find solutions that can be translated into architectural concepts.” Collaboration, therefore, is crucial to the continued success of the Karlsson Architects team. “Our designs are rooted in thorough analyses of the site, the program and the users, putting people at the centre,” Christian explains. “We are experts in user involvement process and have developed a methodology to conduct the workshops, which are especially valuable in terms of getting to know the needs and wants of the users, but also promoting the ownership of the project that they are later going to use.” The team’s portfolio working in psychiatric hospitals and care homes has paved the way for one of the team’s most recent, and ambitious, projects. demensX is a pioneering model for designing better dementia care homes, pushing the boundaries of what architecture can do. In Denmark, dementia is shifting towards a more socially integrated model and demensX will be a benchmark in the sector. F But what precisely is demensX? At the heart of this project is the relationship between our environments and people. “We conducted research with a group of clinicians with an understanding of the illness, the treatment culture, and individual cases,” Christian explained. “Our goal was to identify the basic emotional and cognitive experiences that would improve quality of life. When you have dementia, there’s no before and after, no plan, no memory of what happened yesterday. It’s only here and now, so every moment should be precious.” Thanks to a forward thinking attitude, demensX has championed a digital architectural model. Through VR glasses, future care homes can be explored and perfected with ease. “The main idea behind demensX is that the environment around people with dementia must be simple to understand and use - but at the same time more experiential and stimulating,” Christian explains to us. “The focus is multiple smaller living units laid out around a large central garden, threaded with various paths, which facilitates joint activities like workshops, greenhouses, and animal husbandry. The buildings’ interior and exterior are designed to incorporate light, weather, plants, and wildlife in bright and stimulating spaces, with open line of sight. It’s incredible how someone’s behaviour and disposition can change when their environment is inspiring.” It’s clear from such incredible projects that Karlsson Architects is well ahead of the curve, offering a unique perspective on one of society’s most important issues. We celebrate the team’s tremendous achievements and look forward to what they do in the weeks and months to come. Company: Karlsson Architects Name: Christian Karlsson Email: [email protected] Web: www.karlssonark.com Visions For The Future
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