Dr. Eunice Park – a dual board-certified facial plastic surgeon, is soon to open her flagship aesthetic center — AIREM Modern Beauty Rituals in Syosset, NY offering comprehensive beauty and wellness services from medical-grade facials to injectables and plastic surgery. A special group treatment room called The Retreat will incorporate tea rituals with beauty treatments and can serve as an intimate gathering place to celebrate special occasions from a beauty bar and bridal events, even a master tea ritual. 
READY SET STOP!
No sooner had we started construction when the COVID lockdown hit, prompting the question: how can we re-design for a hyper-hygienic environment while preserving our initial intent for a “warm-cozy guest experience?”
We knew our choice of white calacatta porcelain for the building’s façade reinforced a modern clinical identity, a good material choice reiterating the ideals of AIREM, a Korean word for beauty. We wanted to warm-up the entry of expansive glass and re-designed a cedar-like canopy that stretched the length of the facade. The horizontal planks of the canopy soffit break down the facades scale, as it bends down to form planters that bookend the composition. Showcasing greenery in a gesture of integrating nature further softens the big, clean modern gestures of the façade.
Inside, we felt we had evoked enough human scale and warm materials with the quarter-sawn oak millwork and biophilia, ivy and succulents, so we changed the design from a tiled floor to a monolithic, poured epoxy floor, thereby eradicating messy grout joint lines, which are cumbersome to clean and are less hygienic. The acoustic ceiling became a polished white plaster finish that is also very cleanable. We replaced the intended hallway carpets and extended the anti-microbial epoxy finish down the hallways and into the Operating suite. Cork was later suggested for the 6 treatment rooms, for its many attributes: antimicrobial, anti-mold and mildew, sound dampening, as well as soft underfoot so Dr. Park, who has 3 kids under the age of 6, can sustain long hours on her feet. With a nod to sustainability and easy maintenance, we want Dr. Park’s building to serve her; she should not be serving the building!
Inspiration for AIREM is based on the Korean principle for ‘self-care’ called gwallee. It refers to an activity or treatment for self-maintenance that spans healthy eating to skincare and aesthetic treatments. The goal of gwallee is to nurture the spirit and empower confidence.
Come to AIREM and discover your gwallee.
Robert Henry
roberthenry@rdh-architects.com
www.rdh-architects.com
