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Projects   Interiors - Quarterly - March 2006
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FLEX Physical Therapy & Fitness

Oakland
Pierluigi Serraino

Pierluigi Serraino weds geometry and color to enliven the Flex physical therapy center in California


Photo © David Wakely

By William Weathersby, Jr.

Anyone who has ever labored to recover after a physical injury knows that the rehabilitation process can be arduous but the end results often invigorating and life-affirming. For Flex, a physical therapy and fitness studio in Oakland, California, architect Pierluigi Serraino has enhanced the functional grace of a 3,200-square-foot space with a vibrant visual aesthetic. Planar geometry and the juxtaposition of bright colors envelop the compact facility in a soothing ambience that aims to help clients push ahead toward their goals.

“In her book Illness as Metaphor, Susan Sontag remarks that a language of war and battle often rules when professionals and clients deal with debilitating health and physical conditions,” Serraino says. “Challenging this notion, the main goal of Flex is to insert joy in the path toward recovery from ailment.”

Serraino, who is a project designer with the architecture firm Anshen + Allen in San Francisco, took on this project as a solo assignment. The client was his wife, physical therapist Pamela Wain, who was expanding her practice with her own studio. Though he had never designed a physical therapy space before, the architect says the project’s program, and particularly its mechanical requirements, intrigued him. “With a limited footprint and budget, I wanted to create a Modernist landscape that went beyond a series of enclosed spaces,” Serraino says. “The forms and materials create visual relationships, and clearly reveal how the space is constructed.”

Want the full story? Read the entire article in our March 2006 issue.
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the People

Owner
Pamela Wain

Architect / Designer
Pierluigi Serraino, Assoc. AIA
2518 Rose Walk,
Berkeley, CA 94708
510 549 3442 (tel)
510 549 1778

Engineer(s)
Structure:
Gregory Paul Wallace, Emeryville, CA 94608

HVAC:
Haddon Engineering. Orinda, CA 94563

Plumbing:
Callahan Engineering, El Cerrito, CA 94530

General contractor
Eric F. Anderson, Inc.
1066 Beecher Street
San Leandro, CA 94577
www.efainc.com

Photographer(s)
David Wakely Photography
(Tel) 415-861-7503
www.davidwakely.com

CAD system, project management, or other software used
AutoCad2002 www.autodesk.com; FormZ 5.0 www.formz.com

the Products

Structural system
Wood Frame Construction, Type V- Non Rated

Exterior cladding
Metal/glass curtainwall:
A1 Textiles www.a1textiles.com

Doors
Wood doors:
Louvered wood doors by Lemieux www.lemieux.com

Hardware
Locksets:
Schlage “ X US 26DRhodes” www.schlage.com

Hinges:
Builders Brass 1279 – US26D

Closers:
Furnished by Owner

Interior finishes
Acoustical ceilings:
2’x4’ USG FRP Panels www.usg.com

Suspension grid:
AX26 Aluminum Grid

Paints and stains:
Pool Area: Sherwin-Williams Tile-Clad Epoxy Finish www.sherwin-williams.com

Corrugated Metal:
AB Steel Structures, Inc.
P.O. box 67232
Scotts Valley, CA 95067-7232

Epoxy Flooring System:
Mt. Diablo Flooring System, Inc.
Pittsburg, CA 94565

Furnishings
Tables:
Clinton Industries for the green plinths www.clinton-ind.com

Other:
–  Medi-Plinth by Medi-Man Rehabilitation Products www.medi-man.com
–  Balanced Body Pilates Equipment
8220 Ferguson Ave
Sacramento, CA 95828-0931
(916) 388-2838

Conveyance
Above-Ground Pool Lift:
Aquatic Access Inc., Louisville, KY 40223 www.aquaticaccess.com

Plumbing
Barrier-Free Shower:
Florestone Products Company, Inc.,
Madera, CA www.florestone.com

Above Grade Aquatic Therapy Pool:
Galaxy Aquatics, Inc., Houston, TX 77043
www.galaxy-aquatics.com

Other
Stainless Steel Railing:
Walter Mork Company, Inc., Berkeley, CA 94710 www.waltermork.com

Flo-thru 6” wide Fiberglass Trench Drain System:
Zurn Industries, Inc., Flo-thru Div. Falconer, NY 14733
www.zurn.com
 
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