Healthcare Buildings
Good design has the power to influence and support the human healing process. Because recovery is a process rather than a static state, it requires transitional spaces that foster transformation and facilitate social interaction. In this context, space does not merely serve as a form of complementary medicine; it is an environment with an agency of its own. Often, it is only the absence of health that prompts us to truly examine it.
This issue presents exemplary special-purpose buildings from the health-care sector that achieve exactly this. The mental health clinic by C. F. Møller in London, Dorte Mandrup Arkitekter’s healthcare centre in Copenhagen, and the Children’s Hospital in Zurich by Herzog & de Meuron are contrasted with smaller-scale pilot projects, such as the health kiosks designed by Pasel-K Architects as rural primary care infrastructure in Thüringen. Healing, it seems, knows no scale. The complex correlations between architecture and life are far from fully understood. As a young discipline, this field of architecture remains in constant flux. Jeanette Kunsmann




Projects in this Issue
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Interview with Ralf Pasel
“Radical Simplification Really Does Work”
In northern Thuringia, Pasel-K Architekten have built four healthcare kiosks using an economical timber-frame construction method. Here, we speak to the founder of the practice, Ralf Pasel.
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Embedded in the topography
Winery in Northern Portugal by Atelier Sérgio Rebelo
The Quinta de Adorigo winery's horizontally curved shapes respond to the Alto Douro's flowing vineyard contours.
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Strengthening the community
Rammed Earth Tennis in Ghana
DeRoche Projects' Backyard Community Club in Accra is a pioneer in the use of prefabricated rammed earth systems for construction. It is also helping to develop a tennis culture beyond the elite.
Further Contributions on the Topic
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Assisted living
Borna Park in the Canton of Aargau by Malte Kloes
Malte Kloes Architects are designing a residential and work complex that will enable people with disabilities to enjoy a structured daily routine while strengthening their connection to nature.
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Green mixed use
Health and Daycare Centre in Paris
In the Lefebvre-Périchaux-Brancion residential complex, Guillaume Ramillien Architecture has designed a building with a green inner courtyard that transforms the surrounding urban landscape.
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Care for body and soul
Health Centre in Belgium by Ark-Shelter and Archekta
Inspired by the Maggie's Centres, the wooden modular building in the Belgian coastal town of Knokke-Heist is designed to provide healing for body and soul.
Previous Issues
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Natural Building Materials 3.2026
In this issue, we showcase the beauty and potential of natural building materials; visit a reconstructed “Strickbau”; and examine the timber-earth slabs at Hortus.
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Simply Well Built 1/2.2026
How can architecture deliver on its promises when budgets are tight, tasks are pressing, and resources are limited? In this issue, we hear from architects who have embraced the discipline of doing more with less.
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Transparency Translucency 12.2025
What forms of transparency remain desirable amid social uncertainty and urban densification? Do transparent or translucent envelopes still make sense when contemporary energy concepts are applied? The examples in this issue provide numerous positive arguments.
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Building in Existing Contexts 11.2025
Building in existing fabric conserves resources, saves energy, and reduces carbon emissions – good reasons to choose conversion over new build. The projects in this issue cast a special light on this theme.
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Roofs 10.2025
Can architectural firms keep reinventing the roof? Since 2019, we know the answer is yes! In our new issue, we present various projects with different types of use.
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Building for Children 9.2025
No phase of life is more formative than childhood, and the buildings children experience leave lasting impressions. In this issue we profile child-focused environments realised both as new builds and through adaptive reuse.
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Regional Building Culture 7/8.2025
Traditional building forms have undergone repeated revivals and rejections throughout architectural history. In the current issue, we take a look at various projects.
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Circular Construction 6.2025
The cradle-to-cradle principle envisions buildings returning to the natural cycle after use. Find out how different the approaches and hurdles are in DETAIL 6.2025.
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Facades 5.2025
The facade is a building’s most outward-facing element. The projects featured in this issue reveal the diverse ways architecture firms approach the art of cladding
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Solid Construction 4.2025
Around 75 % of residential buildings in Germany are made of masonry. This enduring preference reflects growing confidence in solid construction and provides the impetus for dedicating this issue of Detail to the topic.
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Urban Housing 3.2025
Building plots are becoming scarce, housing costs are soaring, and apartments in new developments are shrinking. The model has shifted from suburban houses to urban living. But what does that mean?
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Digital and Sustainable 1-2.2025
What lies ahead for architecture in the digital age? To gain insight, we surveyed architects from around the globe on the role of artificial intelligence. The result is a fascinating snapshot of their perspectives.
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Masonry 12.2024
In addition to the winning projects of the Detail Award, our December issue takes us to masonry buildings in France and southern England and to Danish brick construction.
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Timber Construction + Prefabrication 11.2024
From residential estates and office complexes to an observation tower and an Olympic milestone in Paris, this issue showcases the versatility of timber construction through seven exemplary projects.
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Building Envelopes 10.2024
While many new residential buildings are generic investor projects using cheap materials, Paris continues to lead with experimental milestones in the use of natural building materials. We present these building envelopes in this issue.
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New Work 9.2024
New Work is a widely used term these days, but its meaning often remains unclear. In this concept edition of Detail, we let current projects illustrate these changes rather than providing rigid definitions.
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Building in the Mountains 7/8.2024
From the metropolis to the solitude of the mountains: In our summer issue, we explore two highly contrasting subjects. The Olympic Games in Paris and Building in the Mountains.
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Climate and Resources 6.2024
Sustainability encompasses various practices, all aimed at reducing carbon emissions. With this June issue, we spotlight six diverse projects that are taking steps towards a climate-neutral future in very different ways.
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New Housing in Old Stock 5.2024
The focus should be on developing housing within existing buildings and settlementstructures – through conversions, additions, extensions, and densification. Our new issue illustrates how this can be achieved.
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Balconies, Loggias, Terraces 4.2024
Out into the open! Our April issue delves into the construction and design of buildings with balconies, terraces, loggias, and arcades. We hope you enjoy exploring these features.
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Schools 3.2024
Is it possible to reduce costs and guarantee quality simultaneously in construction? As we embark on the new year, we confront a pressing issue that will accompany us for some time to come.
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Simple + Cost-Efficient 1/2.2024
Is it possible to reduce costs and guarantee quality simultaneously in construction? As we embark on the new year, we confront a pressing issue that will accompany us for some time to come.
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Increasing Density 12.2023
This December issue is dedicated to urban density and the architectural solutions needed to achieve it. While we understand the necessity of densification, few are eager to sacrifice their own space.
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Natural Building Materials 11.2023
In the last decade, timber construction has rapidly gained ground in the building industry. Our current issue documents multi-layered examples of the detailed application of natural building materials.
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Windows and Facades 10.2023
Facades have always had many roles to play. They give buildings a face, protect them from the elements, and convey meaning. The examples presented in this issue highlight the merits of thoughtful facades.
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Mixed Use 9.2023
We selected exciting projects for our September issue, focussing on mixed use concepts. They include residential and office spaces, sports halls and gastronomic functions and many more within their complex programs.
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Saving Space 7/8.2023
Space is a type of resource we bring to light in this summer edition of Detail. Our Documentation section features innovative structures that make clever use of limited space.
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Architecture and Climate Protection 6.2023
Anyone asking the inevitable question about climate protection in architecture today will receive not one but many answers.
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Truth to Materials 4.2023
Debates about building materials in architecture inevitably mention the term “truth to materials” (known in German as “Materialgerechtigkeit”).
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Hotels, Hostels, Guesthouses 3.2023
Few sectors of the economy were so battered during the corona years as the hotel industry.
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Taking Stock 1/2.2023
Not only in Germany and Europe but also worldwide, building in existing structures is currently gaining in acceptance and relevance.
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Building Envelopes 12.2022
While compiling our personal favourites of the year in the Detail editorial office, I was surprised at the vast scope of projects my colleagues had experienced in 2022. For this issue’s review of the year, they describe their architectural observations in places like Jerusalem, Berlin, and Montagnana, Italy.
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Circular Economy 11.2022
If the aim is net zero, demolition and landfill disposal must be avoided at all costs. Today, a progressive architecture is one that takes part in the circular economy and reuses building materials.
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Lighting Interiors 10.2022
Our October issue is all about light and interiors. PPAG’s school in Vienna brings daylight into deep cluster spaces to foster daily well-being.
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Cultural Buildings 9.2022
In 1997, the Guggenheim Museum opened in Bilbao, and Frank Gehry’s eccentric new building transformed the Basque city into an overnight hotspot for international tourism.
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Urban Green 7/8.2022
Especially in big dense cities, roofs and facades are the only places left to make things greener.
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Simple and Affordable 6.2022
“Doing away with everything superfluous creates the potential for an architectural quality all of its own,” says Florian Nagler about “simple building” in an interview with Frank Kaltenbach.
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Prefabrication Modular Construction 5.2022
Naturstein und Hochlochziegel, Ortbeton und Stampflehm in vorproduzierten Elementen: Für die Massivbauweise kommen viele unterschiedliche Materialien in Frage, und oft ist ihre Anwendung regional motiviert.
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Solid Construction 4.2022
Natural stone and perforated bricks, cast-in-place concrete, and rammed earth in prefabricated elements – these are just a few of the diverse materials used in solid construction, and their use is often regionally motivated.




