After 16 years of service in the United States Air Force, Dr. Ryan Freeland returned home to Michigan to open a dermatology practice with his sister, Kristen Tungate, as Practice Manager. Kristen leveraged Ryan’s love of the University of Michigan to influence his decision to name the practice Wolverine Dermatology and to use maize and blue as the basis for interior design.
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With a diligent review of the real estate market, the team decided to build and own a new facility to guarantee they had room for growth and leasable space. That process brought them to the experienced team at First Companies, who have expertise in new medical development and business start-ups. r.o.i. Design and R2Design were brought on as interior designers and architects.
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The 7,500 square foot office was designed not only to reflect Dr. Freeland’s love of U of M but the state of Michigan as well. The Michigan-themed design includes an upscale lake house look complete with crisp white trim and nautical light fixtures. Other items include a stone wall inspired by Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore and accents of actual Michigan Petoskey Stones. The site’s landscaping includes the Michigan State Tree, Eastern White Pines, and Michigan’s State Flower, Blossoming Apple Trees.
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The architectural design was heavily influenced by bringing natural light through the entire space. This made for some interesting opportunities in ceiling and lighting details, including floating ceiling planes in the lobby and skylights in the staff clinical den.
“Mary Witte, interior designer at r.o.i. Design saw our vision from the very first meeting. She created our space with distinct elegance and many incredible details. Architect Jon Blair of R2 Design was a perfect fit, he brought our dream to life, creating a building with class and functionality.”
– Dr. Ryan Freeland
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Some of r.o.i. Design’s favorite elements of the design include the custom light fixtures in the lobby (large scale brass harbor lights), the dark wood siding and half log siding that was stained dark gray (Pine and cedar), the large-scale graphic wallpaper in Kristen’s office, the use of carpet insets and stripes throughout, the stand-up desks in the clinical den, and the colorful upholstery in waiting areas.
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