The competition for the concept of a nursing home was held by the Ministry of Construction and the Ministry of Labor of the Russian Federation in June-September of this year, four winners were announced on September 19 in the State Duma building. The competition was held in 2 stages: in the first, 10 teams were selected out of 25 applications in a portfolio, in the second, four out of 10 projects were selected. The winners shared the prize fund of 4.8 million rubles.
Indeed, the topic is not developed in our country and has not been worked out at the modern level, so the very fact of the competition can be considered a positive event, if, of course, it is followed by further work. The name itself - a nursing home - we use it in oral speech, but in writing they are rather shy, which becomes the reason for complex and heavy names, in particular, the definition of the designed object in the competition sounded like this: “conceptual design of buildings of stationary social service organizations citizens of older age groups,”- you must agree, it is quite difficult to perceive and pronounce. The participants, meanwhile, accepted the task with enthusiasm, which is not surprising, its pathos is obvious in the aging European world and especially in our aging country with an even faster speed, where very expensive, to put it mildly, elite nursing homes coexist with those where the price of maintenance per person in a day is good if 600 rubles.
The goal set for the participants can be conveyed something like this: after studying foreign experience, propose a concept of a nursing home with a modern approach, capable of overcoming stereotypes prevailing in our society, in particular, that such institutions are intended for old people who have nowhere else to go, that this is a place suffering and difficult "living out" of the last years, that it is more than a shame to send relatives there. Nursing homes should become places of comfortable and interesting life, the organizers of the competition believe. If we talk about tasks, then the buildings were designed deliberately without any geographic reference and according to a fairly streamlined terms of reference. It is assumed that the revised projects will be recommended to the governors and will become the basis for the development of the industry at a new level and in a new way: “included in the Register of cost-effective design documentation for re-use, which will allow replicating the best solutions throughout the country,” according to the Ministry of Labor.
Meanwhile, in the conditions it was stipulated that the buildings must be planned for the urban environment, their height is 2-3 floors, the estimated number of inhabitants is 150 people. Moreover, we are not talking about the capital, but about the regions. The competition was accompanied by seminars and meetings with the participation of representatives of organizations working with institutions of this type. Among other things, the architects were tasked with offering their own views on the need to adjust the standards for the typology under consideration.
We publish four winning projects.
1st place: MARCHI
head Maria Troyan, architect Nikita Kolbovsky;
Moscow Architectural Institute and the Laboratory of Architectural Solutions for the Elderly
The winning project was developed by the Moscow Architectural Institute team under the leadership of Maria Troyan and in the presentation is preceded by a literary and touching review of the audience: an active pensioner "Baba Rosa", bedridden, but with interest observing the surroundings "Vasily Evgenievich" and the boy Fedya from a neighboring kindergarten, and the story unfolds in such a way that Baba Rosa reads fairy tales to children, and Fedya reads a verse to Vasily Evgenievich: "… one old man thanked me and cried." So from the introductory part of the project, we understand and even get the opportunity to feel how important the social circle in general and communication with children, the sounds of the young world, in particular, are for older people.
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zooming 1/3 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary social service organizations for citizens of older age groups © MARHI / team led by Maria Troyan
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zooming 2/3 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary organizations of social services for citizens of older age groups © MARHI / team led by Maria Troyan
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zooming 3/3 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary organizations of social services for citizens of older age groups © MARHI / team led by Maria Troyan
The project, like other proposals, is not only aimed at caring for the elderly, but takes into account the need for their socialization and integration of the complex into the city; communication becomes one of the key points. But it is the abundance of nuances and detail that captivates in the winning project.
So, the authors formulate an algorithm for choosing territories for its placement: in a city, at the intersection of pedestrian paths, near urban public areas, a kindergarten for communicating with children, a temple and a bus stop (since “older people prefer to use buses,” read - not the metro) … Placement on the border of the park, the authors emphasize, can help reduce the building area by 20-30%.
The authors emphasize the importance of variability, transformability, versatility and modularity, noting, in particular, the importance of such things as moving "close to the previous home" without losing intergenerational ties or, say, "the ability to move with your cat." 4 modules of public spaces have been proposed, depending on the degree of care and mobility of the inhabitants of the center - and the accessibility between them should be “slippery” - another new concept. One of the modules is commercial, focused on the city and included in the city infrastructure, assumes accessibility for all citizens, the presence of cafes, shops and services. Among the public functions are also named: a pharmacy, a library, a computer lab and a post office for receiving online orders.
The architects even suggest the possibility of adding residential floors to the complex for its greater integration into urban life: “the construction of such hybrids would allow provoking intergenerational communication and humane education of generations,” they clarify, believing that the chosen H-shaped plan is convenient for building upward growth.
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zooming 1/6 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary social service organizations for citizens of older age groups © MARHI / team led by Maria Troyan
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zooming 2/6 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary social service organizations for citizens of older age groups © MARHI / team led by Maria Troyan
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zooming 3/6 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary organizations of social services for citizens of older age groups © MARHI / team led by Maria Troyan
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zooming 4/6 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary social service organizations for citizens of older age groups © MARHI / team led by Maria Troyan
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zooming 5/6 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary social service organizations for citizens of older age groups © MARHI / team led by Maria Troyan
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zooming 6/6 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary organizations of social services for citizens of older age groups © MARHI / team led by Maria Troyan
A “corridor-free” layout has been proposed, a separate emphasis is placed on the abundance of natural lighting: skylights, continuous glazing of public areas, floor-to-ceiling and antiaircraft windows. The basic height of 2 floors and the silhouette with a pitched roof give the complex features of traditional architecture, which, against the background of the typical post-war buildings prevailing in our country, will look more innovative than conservative.
There are many words in this project; the combination of a lyrical and literary component with many details, such as a postomat or a cat with whom you can move, emphasizes the analytical approach and attention to the problems of older people; however, the authors do not cross the border of excessive sentimentality, so the listed qualities can be considered rather the merit of the winning proposal. ***
2nd place: DK architects
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zooming 1/3 House for seniors © DK architects
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zooming 2/3 House for the elderly © DK architects
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zooming 3/3 House for seniors © DK architects
Grigory Dainov's Yaroslavl bureau DK architects focused on the versatility of rectangular blocks with a flat roof, whose shape echoes the typical low-rise buildings widespread in the cities of the Russian Federation. But, unlike the latter, the project actively uses the advantages of a flat roof: it is exploited, green, there is a garden-vegetable garden, so beloved by the elderly. It compensates for the absence or inaccessibility of a summer residence or a personal plot, the authors rightly explain, giving this part a significant area, in fact, equal to the floor of the entire building.
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zooming 1/4 Explosion diagram. House for seniors © DK architects
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zooming 2/4 Analytical charts. House for seniors © DK architects
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zooming 3/4 Analytical charts. House for seniors © DK architects
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zooming 4/4 Analytical charts. House for seniors © DK architects
Grigory Dainov, like his competition colleagues, combines living quarters with developed public ones - calling the latter a "universal core" and placing there: places for sports and creativity, recreation, administration offices. The typology of living spaces is subdivided into 4 options: independent for those who do not need care; assisted - with minimal support; and two more serious ones, with skilled nursing and geriatric care. The last two types are occupied in the project b about the largest area and are located on the second floor, the lowest of the residential ones. The first floor is given over to infrastructure, creative and sports blocks, on the third there are those who do not need serious support. The authors emphasize that three-story buildings are more compact than the two-story ones proposed in the TK and are universal for any urban context.
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zooming 1/6 General plan. House for seniors © DK architects
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zooming 2/6 Axonometry. House for seniors © DK architects
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zooming 3/6 Facades. House for seniors © DK architects
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zooming 4/6 Second floor plan. House for seniors © DK architects
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zooming 5/6 Ground floor plan. House for seniors © DK architects
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zooming 6/6 Situational plan. House for seniors © DK architects
The parallelepiped cells are interpreted as universal modules, implying different types of layouts: architects rhyme options for arranging buildings with different types of layouts of Russian cities, but for example they take an H-shaped plan with a shift and two half-open private courtyards, "corresponding to the microdistrict type of urban development", which "Most common in our country." The authors recommend a meridional orientation for better insolation, and the outer wall of each room is positioned diagonally, both for capturing light and for the sake of a triangular balcony. The facades are becoming zigzag, and the buildings no longer resemble typical three-story buildings, but the architecture of sanatoriums and rest homes, Soviet and not only.
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zooming 1/4 Interiors. House for seniors © DK architects
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zooming 2/4 Interiors. House for seniors © DK architects
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zooming 3/4 Interiors. House for seniors © DK architects
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zooming 4/4 Interiors. House for seniors © DK architects
DK architects also, unlike their colleagues, offer a specific test site in Yaroslavl on the Tutaevskoe highway, while emphasizing that the project is "adaptable to most micro-districts of late Soviet development." ***
3rd place: Sergey Kiselev and Partners
The two main accents of the proposal of the architects of the company "Sergey Kiselev and Partners" are the complete openness of public spaces of the lower tier to the city and a flexible system of modules, similar to a laconic constructor. The architects position their project as an “open system”: the building is not isolated from the city, on the contrary, its public spaces are designed to be used both by the residents of the complex and, on a par with them, by the townspeople. “For older people, the opportunity to be included in the life of society is important, the opportunity, perhaps, not always to participate, but to feel involved,” explains the project CEO Anton Busalov. - It is important that a person is surrounded by life: not only peers, but also people of different ages, who are able to saturate the space with various emotions, to keep in touch with society. So, according to our plan, the city should literally "enter" the lower tier of the building."
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zooming 1/4 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary organizations of social services for citizens of older age groups © Sergey Kiselev and Partners
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zooming 2/4 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary organizations of social services for citizens of older age groups © Sergey Kiselev and Partners
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zooming 3/4 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary organizations of social services for citizens of older age groups © Sergey Kiselev and Partners
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zooming 4/4 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary organizations of social services for citizens of older age groups © Sergey Kiselev and Partners
The authors proposed two modules: for the public and residential tiers. The first floor module is a rectangular space, a cell that can fit almost "anything": a sports complex, a swimming pool, a cafe, a dining room, rooms for circles, a garden and a vegetable garden, - the filling, as well as the number of cells, can vary depending on the place and tasks. The elements of public spaces that make up the stylobate are united by a wide gallery, where exhibitions and fairs can be held. On the roof of the stylobate there are courtyards for the residents of the complex, closed from outsiders, but green.
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zooming Conceptual design of buildings of stationary organizations of social services for citizens of older age groups © Sergey Kiselev and Partners
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zooming Conceptual design of buildings of stationary organizations of social services for citizens of older age groups © Sergey Kiselev and Partners
The living quarters are divided into three types: housing for the elderly in need of constant care, people with limited mobility and memory impairments; housing for people who do not need such care, but would benefit from the proximity of medical care and the ability to communicate with people of the same age; and a hotel. In the first, there is a dining room on each floor, a medical block, and in the rooms there is a niche for an assistant if a person needs constant care. The latter are more like apartments, it is even supposed to move there with their own furniture. Zones for communication are outlined everywhere - spacious for open, small for private, for example, meetings with relatives, in blocks of the first type they are located in atriums and equipped with glass walls.
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zooming 1/4 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary organizations of social services for citizens of older age groups © Sergey Kiselev and Partners
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zooming 2/4 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary organizations of social services for citizens of older age groups © Sergey Kiselev and Partners
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zooming 3/4 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary organizations of social services for citizens of older age groups © Sergey Kiselev and Partners
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zooming 4/4 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary organizations of social services for citizens of older age groups © Sergey Kiselev and Partners
This is how 4 variants of buildings of different proportions appeared: for the first type, two types of sections were proposed - a larger one with two atriums, and a smaller one with one. In the final set, their number and availability may vary, the hotel appears in a complex with the maximum "complete set". You can arrange blocks by tying to the core in different ways - this is how the authors achieve integrity and diversity.
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zooming 1/6 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary organizations of social services for citizens of older age groups © Sergey Kiselev and Partners
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zooming 2/6 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary organizations of social services for citizens of older age groups © Sergey Kiselev and Partners
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zooming 3/6 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary organizations of social services for citizens of older age groups © Sergey Kiselev and Partners
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zooming 4/6 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary organizations of social services for citizens of older age groups © Sergey Kiselev and Partners
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zooming 5/6 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary organizations of social services for citizens of older age groups © Sergey Kiselev and Partners
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zooming 6/6 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary organizations of social services for citizens of older age groups © Sergey Kiselev and Partners
The facades of the residential buildings suggest natural materials, wood and brick, and modern glass balconies and stylobate roofs, the windows are offered "in the floor", and the furniture in the "apartments" interprets the design themes of the 1970s. Hotel facades - glass and aluminum; all together give the impression of a modern hotel or residential complex. “Already now, many elderly people appreciate the modern environment and comfort,” explains the head of the SKiP Igor Shvartsman. - From our point of view, deliberate "retro" aimed at a hypothetical audience of "grandmothers" is inappropriate, in our proposal we took into account the conservatism of older people, but to a moderate extent. In addition, we see the purpose of the work in proposing a life scenario not only for today's grandparents, who, for example, may need a conventional old chest of drawers and a gramophone, but also to take a broader look, to think about those who are still young, healthy and progressive. Not much time will pass, and the inhabitants of such complexes will need hi-end equipment, wi-fi and so on - so we consider it right to include maximum flexibility in the project, especially considering the prospect of its repeatability."
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zooming 1/5 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary organizations of social services for citizens of older age groups © Sergey Kiselev and Partners
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zooming 2/5 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary organizations of social services for citizens of older age groups © Sergey Kiselev and Partners
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zooming 3/5 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary organizations of social services for citizens of older age groups © Sergey Kiselev and Partners
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zooming 4/5 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary organizations of social services for citizens of older age groups © Sergey Kiselev and Partners
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zooming 5/5 Conceptual design of buildings of stationary organizations of social services for citizens of older age groups © Sergey Kiselev and Partners
4th place: Semrén + Månsson
Description from the architects:
“We presented a modular block that combines two cells, each of which includes 6 single rooms for living, united around a common multifunctional hall. Residential blocks can be adapted to any type of care and are built in chains, the configuration of which can be freely varied depending on the location and project requirements.
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zooming 1/8 Concept formation. Design of buildings for stationary social service organizations for senior citizens © Semrén + Månsson
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zooming 2/8 Flexibility. Design of buildings for stationary social service organizations for senior citizens © Semrén + Månsson
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zooming 3/8 Communication architecture / landscape. Design of buildings for stationary social service organizations for senior citizens © Semrén + Månsson
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zooming 4/8 Public spaces. Design of buildings for stationary social service organizations for senior citizens © Semrén + Månsson
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zooming 5/8 Winter gardens / terraces / front gardens. Design of buildings for stationary social service organizations for senior citizens © Semrén + Månsson
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zooming 6/8 Living cell. Design of buildings for stationary social service organizations for senior citizens © Semrén + Månsson
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zooming 7/8 Room. Design of buildings for stationary social service organizations for senior citizens © Semrén + Månsson
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zooming 8/8 The concept of façade solutions. Design of buildings for stationary social service organizations for senior citizens © Semrén + Månsson
Modular blocks are formed around a public space, which can be unique in each specific project, since the layout of the blocks is fundamentally diverse. The project assumes a variable number of storeys, from two to three floors. Among other things, it depends on the terrain. The approach to the landscape and the set of its functions are also built on a modular principle: by combining, landscape modules of different typologies and standard sizes: lawn, flower garden, greenhouse, fragrant herb garden, pond, wooden flooring, sports ground, and create a variety of thematic and leisure zones.
The main idea of the authors of the concept is to create a comfortable and functional environment for residents, employees and visitors through creating a feeling of home comfort, communication and interaction with society and nature.
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zooming 1/5 Masterplan. Design of buildings for stationary social service organizations for senior citizens © Semrén + Månsson
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zooming 2/5 Plan of the 2nd floor. Design of buildings for stationary social service organizations for senior citizens © Semrén + Månsson
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zooming 3/5 Plan of the 3rd floor. Design of buildings for stationary social service organizations for senior citizens © Semrén + Månsson
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zooming 4/5 Plan of the 1st floor. Design of buildings for stationary social service organizations for senior citizens © Semrén + Månsson
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zooming 5/5 Block plan. Design of buildings for stationary social service organizations for senior citizens © Semrén + Månsson
The residential units are square in plan. Their inner core is a multi-luminous winter garden-atrium slightly shifted relative to the center of the module, which ensures the penetration of the necessary amount of daylight into the building, a favorable microclimate and a positive emotional environment. Mobile partitions allow transforming public spaces into more or less private ones and changing their functions. Each block has a duty station, sanitary facilities and a room for psychological work.
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zooming Design of buildings for stationary social service organizations for senior citizens © Semrén + Månsson
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zooming Design of buildings for stationary social service organizations for senior citizens © Semrén + Månsson
Public spaces on the ground floor are grouped around landscaped courtyards and are connected by transparent passages. There is a swimming pool, areas for gymnastics and movie shows, a hairdresser, creative studios, a vegetable garden, greenhouses and even small ponds for fishing.
The project was developed in accordance with the current standards, and therefore is fully realizable when using dry pipes and power rods on the roof for access to closed yards. The use of such solutions is permissible in accordance with fire and evacuation requirements and is formalized with special technical conditions.
The facades are conceived as laconic and subordinate to a single concept, but varied due to materials: brick, ceramics or fiber cement, which differ in neighboring blocks, ensuring their individuality. Large windows provide an abundance of daylight and the opportunity to admire nature, and spacious balconies with pots provide an opportunity for people with disabilities to be outdoors and grow flowers or other plants. The silhouette tends to be multi-sloped, but asymmetrical in a modern way. ***
