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      Erik Bratsberg fills Persona restaurant with tactile materials and own artworks

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      Interior designer Erik Bratsberg has created unique artwork for the interior of the Persona restaurant in Stockholm, which also features asymmetrical terrazzo and patinated brass details.

      Bratsberg, who worked in finance before moving into interior design, wanted the fine dining restaurant in Stockholm’s upmarket Östermalm neighbourhood to have a warm and welcoming feel.
      Persona is located in Stockholm’s Östermalm area”The inspiration is drawn from a mix of personal experiences, subconscious imprints from admired styles, particularly mid-century Italian design, and a desire to integrate a homely warmth into a hospitality environment,” he told Dezeen.
      “The design philosophy centres around creating a timeless, inviting space that enhances the dining experience while maintaining a sense of personal touch and intimacy.”
      Green tones feature throughout the interiorGreen hues are used throughout Persona’s 120-square-metre interior, complementing its cream-coloured walls and numerous wooden furniture pieces and panelling.

      “Green is my go-to when I want to arouse a sense of calmness and comfort,” Bratsberg explained.
      Designer Erik Bratsberg used furniture pieces with rounded and organic shapes”It’s a tertiary colour, a mix of a cold and a warm colour, which allows it to go well with both warmer and colder hues and materials – a yin and yang of colours somehow,” he added.
      “Green also brings the mind to nature and I guess my love for green relates to the joy of seeing the leaves back on the trees after a long Swedish winter.”
      “Honey-tinted” oak shelving is filled with crockery and artThe restaurant, which feels more like a living room than an eatery in parts, also features plenty of natural materials such as stone and wood, which are interspersed with terrazzo and brass to create tactile interest.
      This material mix was chosen to evoke a sense of “casual elegance”, Bratsberg said.
      “For the floor I played around with the possibilities of terrazzo, using shades of green and warm greys and whites forming an asymmetrical pattern,” the designer explained.

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      Bratsberg clad the walls of the Persona restaurant in an off-white plaster with a mottled surface, designed to contrast the “silky honey-tinted oak” used for the wall shelving and tables.
      “Patinated brass together with details in yellow ochre acts as an accent,” Bratsberg added. “Sheer curtains, patinated leather and textured textiles round it all off.”
      Bratsberg created his own artworks for the restaurantCustom-made abstract artworks also decorate the interior. Bratsberg made these himself from watercolour paintings that he had made, which were then screen-printed onto acoustic panels.
      “In my multidisciplinary practice I strive to interrelate my art, design and interior work – why not make a lamp into sculpture, or a bar front as a painting, or a plain wall a relief?” Bratsberg said.
      Cut-out geometric details add extra interest to the barAlso notable in the interior is the variation of shapes, with the angular tables and counters contrasting against round and jagged lamps, cut-out geometric details and smaller tables made from organically shaped burl wood and stone.
      “Perfectly straight lines and symmetry bring order and calmness for the eye, but never have I been particularly intrigued by squares and straight lines,” Bratsberg said.
      “On the other hand, too much asymmetrical geometries and organic shapes can bring the feeling of disorder. But balancing the two – as with many opposites or contrasts – can create an interesting harmony,” he added.
      The bathroom features undulating mirrors and a mix of different shapesIn the bathroom, undulating mirrors match a wavy sink and are juxtaposed against square wall niches and angled, jagged cut-out wall decorations.
      “Forms, lines, colours and materiality speak to us in mysterious ways, but an interior without any sculptural form and asymmetries is like a language without exclamation marks, gestures or emotional expression to me,” Bratsberg concluded.
      Other Stockholm restaurants with interesting interiors featured on Dezeen include an “unexpected” restaurant in a historic food hall and a decadent Italian restaurant located in a former cinema.
      The photography is by Erik Lefvander.

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      Kingston Lafferty Design includes “sensual” red quartzite kitchen in townhouse renovation

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      Dublin studio Kingston Lafferty Design has transformed the architecture and interiors of this family home in Cork, Ireland, which features 1970s-style shapes and colours informed by the work of designer Verner Panton.

      Positioned on Lovers Walk hill overlooking the city of Cork, the townhouse – called Lovers Walk – was renovated by Kingston Lafferty Design.
      Kingston Lafferty Design completed the renovation in CorkThe studio originally planned to just update the interiors, but decided that a more extensive architectural transformation was needed after discovering structural instabilities in the home.
      Kingston Lafferty Design removed all of the floors, which lacked foundations and insulation in their concrete slab, and completely reconfigured the two-storey property’s layout.
      Rooms on the ground floor were designed around an oak-lined hallway”As the building was originally built in the 1970s, we wanted to return to its roots,” studio founder Róisín Lafferty told Dezeen.

      “We thrived on inspiration from Verner Panton with his use of strong clashing colour, playful shapes and oversized elements,” she added.
      One of these spaces is a “sensual” red kitchenThe ground floor was adapted to include an open-plan kitchen defined by a counter, island and splashback finished in veiny red quartzite.
      Ruby-toned timber was used to create the geometric cabinets. When layered with the quartzite, “it sounds like a disaster, but it’s a delight,” said the designer.
      The living room follows a similar design to the kitchenThe space, described by the studio as a “sensual red-toned jewel kitchen”, is one of several rooms on the ground floor of Lovers Walk that were designed around the central, oak-lined hallway.
      “We used the hallway as the core of the house, which grounded the space with pops of colour stemming from it. Each room leading from the core appears like a framed view or window of colour,” explained Lafferty.
      It includes a green feature wall that takes cues from Mies van der Rohe’s iconic Barcelona PavilionThe living room includes blue velvet sofas and a green feature wall clad in swirly book-matched marble, which was fitted with an alcove reserved for a subtle fireplace.
      When creating the polished stone wall, the studio took cues from the seminal Barcelona Pavilion, completed in 1929 by modernist architect Mies van der Rohe.
      A floor-to-ceiling headboard takes centre stage in the main bedroom”We used green as an overall thread throughout the house, inspired by the surrounding landscape,” added Lafferty.
      “Although depending on the time of year, the colours tend to change and so we were able to add in other rich colours that anchor the green such as burgundies and bright oranges,” she added.
      Stonework also defines the en-suite bathroom”One would assume this mix of colours would clash, but we choose the tones and textures of each to ensure that all of them would blend harmoniously,” Lafferty said.
      Upstairs, the main bedroom and en-suite bathroom were dressed in the same eclectic interiors as the communal spaces. A floor-to-ceiling headboard, finished in diamond-shaped green tiles originally designed by 20th-century architect Gio Ponti, frames the bed.
      A playful bed was added to the bedroom created for the occupants’ childBalloon-like coloured glass vases were positioned on two bedside tables, which were topped with the same slabs of Rosso Levanto marble as the geometric vanity desk.
      The bedroom designed for the occupants’ child features an alternative bed – a playful green structure with two stacked levels and half-moon openings that reveal a cosy sleeping area on the bottom level.

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      Other accents featured throughout the home include burl wood, terrazzo, plaster and brass. The repetition of 1970s-style thick pile carpets emphasises the dwelling’s textured material palette.
      Lovers Walk is the studio’s “closest nod” to the work of Panton, explained Lafferty – “down to the selection of every tile, light fitting and exquisite piece of designer furniture”.
      Deep blues characterise the guest bedroom”Although there is such an array of materiality, it is balanced by repeated colour, shape and form,” she said.
      “Every space in this house is an assault on the senses, in the best way possible.”
      Lovers Walk was informed by the work of Verner PantonFounded in 2010, Kingston Lafferty Design has completed projects ranging from a Dublin restaurant with oversized lollipop-like lamps and a co-working office in Belfast that includes a yoga studio.
      The photography is by Ruth Maria Murphy. 
      Project credits:
      Interior architecture and design: Kingston Lafferty DesignWoodwork: DFLStonework: Miller Brothers

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      Interior designer Iris Apfel dies aged 102

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      American interior designer, fashion influencer and “geriatric starlet” Iris Apfel has passed away at the age of 102.

      The death of the multidisciplinary creative, who was recognised for her flamboyant personal style, was announced on her Instagram account with an image of Apfel in her trademark oversized glasses.
      Apfel, who worked in the interiors and fashion industries throughout her career, shot to international fame in her 80s and 90s after New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art exhibited a show of her eclectic clothes and accessories in 2005.
      Titled Rara Avis: Selections From the Iris Apfel Collection, it was the first time the museum had dedicated an exhibition to someone’s wardrobe.
      Born Iris Barrel in 1921 in Queens, Apfel studied art history at New York University and art at the University of Wisconsin.

      After graduating, she worked for fashion magazine Women’s Wear Daily before interning for interior designer Elinor Johnson.
      Together with her late husband Carl Apfel, whom she married in 1948, she set up the brand Old World Weavers – a company that specialised in striking textiles informed by things found on the Apfels’ travels.
      Under Old World Weavers, the duo completed high-profile projects such as restoring the White House interiors for nine presidents including Harry Truman and Bill Clinton.

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      The designer became a visiting lecturer at the University of Texas in 2011, where she taught fashion students about textiles and crafts.
      In later life, Apfel became a staple of the fashion industry.  In 2018, toy manufacturer Mattel created a Barbie doll in the designer’s image, although it was not for sale. At the age of 97, she signed a modelling contract with IMG Models.
      Apfel playfully called herself a “geriatric starlet” and described the prospect of retirement as “a fate worse than death” shortly after turning 100.
      Following the news of her passing, designers around the world paid tribute to Apfel’s legacy. “Iris Apfel has become a world-famous fashion icon because of her incredible talent not only as an artist but as an influencer,” said fashion designer Tommy Hilfiger.
      The photography is by Ron Adar courtesy of Shutterstock.

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      Lucas y Hernández Gil adds multi-use greenhouse to Madrid bungalow

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      A renovated 1970s bungalow with “kitsch character” and a greenhouse that doubles as a living room feature in Casamontesa – a weekend home designed by Spanish studio Lucas y Hernández Gil.

      The project began when a couple asked the studio to overhaul a single-storey house that was once part of a hotel complex on the outskirts of Madrid.
      The renovated bungalow and a multifunctional greenhouse (above) make up CasamontesaThe brief later expanded to include a multifunctional greenhouse that can be used as a workspace, a guest bedroom, a gym or simply as a garden room.
      Lucas y Hernández Gil, led by architects Cristina Domínguez Lucas and Fernando Hernández-Gil Ruano, developed a distinct character for each building.
      The main house is a bungalow built in the 1970sCasamontesa’s renovated bungalow has a warm, playful style that draws on the 1970s aesthetic while the garden pavilion has a more utilitarian feel.

      “The owners, a young urban couple who love design and live and work in the centre of Madrid, were looking for a functional and compact getaway within a fantastic garden,” Lucas told Dezeen.
      “They wanted a very comfortable and flexible home that would be useful for both working and getting together with friends.”
      The interior centres around a new kitchen islandThe bungalow renovation involved simplifying the interior layout to create a combined kitchen, dining room and living room, with a bedroom and bathroom off to one side.
      “The house, in addition to being small, was very compartmentalised,” explained Lucas.
      The materials palette includes pink marble and handmade tilesTo unify the newly open-plan living space, the designers installed an island that serves as a worktop, dining table and social gathering place.
      This island features a countertop made from Portuguese pink marble while its sides are covered in the same handmade burgundy tiles that line an adjacent window recess.
      An arched fireplace provides a focal point in the living room”The rest of the surfaces – Campaspero stone floors and waxed tinted plaster walls – establish a dialogue by contrast with the colourful and shiny surface of the tiles,” added Lucas.
      Key details in the living room include an arched fireplace and a tadelakt plaster coffee table, while the bedroom features semi-circular marble nightstands.

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      For Casamontesa’s garden room, the design team customised a prefabricated greenhouse.
      A pergola extends the building volume outwards in a bid to blur the boundary between inside and out, and is topped with wooden blinds to provide shade.
      A pergola extends the width of the greenhouseA wooden box on wheels provides an additional bedroom, described as a “small Shigeru Ban-style mobile room”.
      Other additions include thermal curtains and an automatic shading and ventilation system, which allow for versatile use of the space throughout the year.
      A “Shigeru Ban-style mobile room” provides an additional sleeping space”By complementing the programme of the original bungalow, a more complete and flexible program is achieved, overcoming the limitations of a weekend house,” added Lucas.
      Other recent projects by Lucas y Hernández Gil include a bar featuring extreme colour blocking and an apartment with a hidden closet.
      The photography is by José Hevia.

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      StudioTwentySeven opens “monumental” flagship gallery in Tribeca

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      Collectible design gallery StudioTwentySeven has taken over a huge space in a Tribeca textile building, creating a warm and serene environment to present museum-sized, limited-edition pieces.

      The gallery’s New York City flagship at the corner of Church and Leonard Streets covers 7,000 square feet (650 square metres) across the ground floor of a 1901 neoclassical building by architect Henry J Hardenbergh.
      StudioTwentySeven founders Nacho Polo and Robert Onsuka introduced curved walls and archways to the interior of their flagship galleryFormerly Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s Restaurant 66, the grand space benefits from double-height ceilings and eight 16-foot-tall windows on two sides, overlooking the mirrored Anish Kapoor sculpture squashed beneath Herzog & de Meuron’s “Jenga Tower”.
      StudioTwentySeven founders Nacho Polo and Robert Onsuka, who started their venture in Miami in 2018, chose this location for the New York flagship for its “monumental scale” and ability to showcase huge sculptural works.
      The double-height ceilings allow large-scale pieces to be displayed, like a hanging bear sculpture by Paola Pivi”The building’s elaborately carved facade, and its stone entry staircase leading to beautifully restored original triple doors, set the tone for what clients of StudioTwentySeven will experience inside – a space that is sophisticated yet genuinely welcoming,” said the duo.

      Led by Polo, the renovation of interiors involved the introduction of curved walls and a rotunda, along with an archway fitted with a 12-foot-tall, hand-carved chestnut door.
      A giant bronze and glass chandelier hangs above an organic-shaped dining tableThe team worked with lighting specialists L’Observatorie to design a custom system that imbues the space with a warm atmospheric quality, complementing the pieces on display.
      A massive bronze and glass chandelier comprising hundreds of individual petals is suspended above an organically shaped French oak and waxed bronze dining table.

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      Pale oak floors run throughout the gallery, in places separated from the walls by glowing bands of light, and sheer curtains diffuse the abundance of natural light that enters during the day.
      Other architectural details include a tall fireplace shaped into the hand-plastered walls and a chestnut-lined library hidden behind a pair of discreet doors, designed to “create moments of surprise”.
      The founders also created a rotunda space for displaying specific piecesFor the gallery’s opening in February 2023, several museum-sized works from Polo and Onsuka’s private collection were installed in the space.
      These include a hanging bear by Italian artist Paola Pivi, which had to be transported from the Aspen Art Museum in a special truck, and a bronze sculpture titled Owl and Boy by Japan-based Otani Workshop.
      “Moments of surprise” include a hidden library lined in chestnutPolo and Onsuka, who were judges for Dezeen Awards 2023, also have gallery spaces in Miami’s Little River and London’s Mayfair – open by appointment only.
      Their new flagship in Tribeca joins a multitude of collectible design galleries in the Downtown NYC neighbourhood, like R & Company and Egg Collective, where expansive former industrial lofts provide ideal settings for presenting furniture, lighting and art.
      The photography is by William Jess Laird.

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      Eight inviting breakfast nooks for easy-going mornings

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      For our latest lookbook, we’ve rounded up eight kitchens with welcoming breakfast nooks of different shapes and sizes that provide a relaxed place to enjoy a meal.

      Typically tucked into a corner in or near the kitchen, breakfast nooks offer compact dining spaces that are more casual than a formal dining room and cosier than an island bar.
      They are usually characterised by banquette seating fixed to the wall with a freestanding table and chairs, but the examples in this lookbook show how the idea of a breakfast nook can be adapted to suit any size space.
      From L-shaped benches in awkward kitchen corners to curved banquettes under bay windows, read on to see how a breakfast nook can be nestled into any home for the perfect morning coffee or casual meal.
      This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration, see previous lookbooks featuring homes with oversized windows overlooking lush views, houses with closed staircases and interiors that embody the “bookshelf wealth” trend.

      Photo by Carola RipamontiTeorema Milanese, Italy, by Marcante-Testa
      Design studio Marcante-Testa overhauled an apartment in Milan with a rich mix of colours and materials, creating a clear separation between the kitchen and an adjoining breakfast nook with its choice of surfaces.
      Geometric floor tiles in the nook contrast with the marble kitchen floor, but the two spaces are tied together with the sea-green colour of the tiles and kitchen cabinets.
      Find out more about Teorema Milanese ›
      Photo by Prue RuscoeBudge Over Dover, Australia, by YSG
      This breakfast nook sits in the corner of an open-plan kitchen and living area, next to bi-folding doors that open onto a pool terrace.
      Interior design studio YSG designed the nook’s banquette seating to follow the curve of the wall and upholstered it in brown and green fabric to suit natural surfaces in the Sydney home, including terracotta floor tiles, dark wood accents and marble tabletops.
      Find out more about Budge Over Dover ›
      Photo by Daniëlle SiobhánZwaag home, Netherlands, by DAB Studio
      Generous U-shaped banquette seating wraps the walls of the nook in this kitchen, situated in a home in Zwaag, the Netherlands, that was renovated by Dutch interior design practice DAB Studio.
      The studio chose grey upholstery for the seating and placed an Arebescato Orobico marble table at the centre to balance the expansive use of wood on the floor, ceiling, walls and kitchen cabinets.
      Find out more about the Zwaag home ›
      Photo by Anson SmartPacific House, Australia, by Alexander & Co
      A circular skylight illuminates the curving breakfast nook in this oceanside home in Sydney, which architecture studio Alexander & Co renovated to make it more suited to family life.
      Aiming to create a calm and contemplative space, oak built-in seating was tucked against a concave window that overlooks a swimming pool in the garden.
      Find out more about Pacific House ›
      Photo by Lorenzo ZandriSteele’s Road House, UK, by Neiheiser Argyros
      Steele’s Road House is a Victorian terrace in London that was renovated and extended by local studio Neiheiser Argyros to increase natural light in the home.
      A breakfast nook was added to the kitchen, with curved bench seating built below a bay window offering a more casual place to eat than the separate formal dining room.
      Find out more about Steele’s Road House ›
      Photo by Jan VranovskyNagatachō Apartment, Japan, by Adam Nathaniel Furman
      Designer Adam Nathaniel Furman nestled an L-shaped breakfast nook in the kitchen of the 160-square-metre Nagatachō Apartment in Tokyo.
      The tabletop adjoins the cabinets in the U-shaped kitchen and extends along a herringbone-tiled wall. Pink shelving was built over the nook to provide additional storage in the compact apartment.
      Find out more about Nagatachō Apartment ›
      Photo by Benjamin Hosking.Brunswick apartment, Australia, by Murray Barker and Esther Stewart
      Architect Murray Barker and artist Esther Stewart created a breakfast nook in this 1960s Melbourne apartment by tucking an L-shaped fixed bench into the corner of the kitchen.
      The kitchen was originally too small for a dining table, so the duo removed a wall that separated it from the living room and added the custom-made table and seating, which is lit from above by a square skylight.
      Find out more about the Brunswick apartment ›
      Photo by Tamara UribeCasa Pulpo, Mexico, by Workshop Architects
      Local architecture studio Workshop Architects added a breakfast nook when renovating a Spanish colonial house in Mérida, Mexico, aiming to add a sense of cosiness.
      Seating was built in the corner of the kitchen between two archways that lead to the living room and a storage room. On the opposite side of the kitchen, glass doors give views of two purple concrete dwellings that were built in the garden.
      Find out more about Casa Pulpo ›
      This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration, see previous lookbooks featuring homes with oversized windows overlooking lush views, houses with closed staircases and interiors that embody the “bookshelf wealth” trend.

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      Byró Architekti “blurs old and new” at renovated House in Kutná Hora

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      Prague studio Byró Architekti has renovated a 19th-century house in the Czech town of Kutná Hora, adding unexpected openings and colourful joinery that create a playful contrast with the original interior.

      The studio was tasked with restoring the character of the existing house, which had been compromised by a previous programme of renovations in the 1970s.
      Pastel green defines the entrance of House in Kutná Hora by Byró ArchitektiThe project improves the connection between the home’s internal spaces by introducing new windows and openings while aiming to seamlessly layer new elements on top of the original built fabric.
      “Our main goal was to rediscover the house’s memory and original layers, which were actually quite rare, and seamlessly blend them with new layers to create a cohesive whole,” Byró Architekti explained.
      Chequerboard tiles in the foyer match the painted joinery”We aimed to blur the boundary between the old and the new rather than highlighting it,” the studio added.

      The house’s main feature is a spiral staircase that forms a vertical circulation core at the centre of the plan. Internal windows and glass-block walls were added on each level to provide a visual connection to the living spaces.
      Plywood cabinetry and wall panelling feature in the ground-floor music roomAn original stone staircase links the ground floor and first floor, while a new stair leading to the attic has floating steel treads that allow light from a skylight to reach the lower level.
      A spacious entrance hall on the ground floor connects with a music room and a bathroom on one side of the staircase, while utility areas and an artist’s studio face onto a courtyard at the rear.
      Also on the ground floor is a small artist’s studio with colourful joineryThe main living space containing the kitchen is housed on the first floor along with the principal bedroom and a home office. The attic contains two bedrooms for the children as well as a bathroom.
      Light and colour are used throughout the project to create spaces with different atmospheres. While the building’s exterior is decorated modestly to fit into the streetscape, a more expressive colour palette is applied internally.

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      “Overall, muted shades are chosen combined with more pronounced colour surfaces or accents in several specific situations,” Byró Architekti said.
      The entrance hall features chequerboard floor tiles in a pastel-green hue that matches the painted joinery of the surrounding doors and windows. The balustrade and the treads of the new staircase are also finished in the same colour.
      Stairs lead up to the living spacesByró Architekti designed various pieces of custom furniture for the project, including a plywood shelving unit with a bright-red metal structure that extends along one wall of the ground-floor studio space.
      The playroom also features plywood cabinetry and wall panelling, inset with an internal clerestory window that lets light into the adjoining bathroom.
      Kitchen cabinets are painted in a powdery blue colourThe main living area features a vaulted ceiling lined with plywood. A concrete bench is positioned along one wall to support a tile-clad fireplace while a window behind looks onto the stairwell.
      The kitchen has cabinets and internal doors painted in a pale blue colour. A porthole window in this space also offers a glimpse of the spiral stair.
      The vaulted ceiling of the living room is lined with plywoodThe courtyard and garden at the rear of the building were also renovated as part of the project. This outdoor space can be accessed from the lower floor or via a new terrace outside the main living area.
      Byró Architekti was founded by Tomáš Hanus and Jan Holub, who studied at the Czech Technical University in Prague and worked in various practices before setting up their studio.
      The garden can be accessed via a new terrace outside the main living areaPreviously, the duo completed a cabin with a sweeping roof and red timber cladding in the Šumava mountains.
      Other renovations in the Czech Republic that have recently been featured on Dezeen include a 500-year-old home filled with contemporary furniture and a 1920s villa in Prague that was revamped by No Architects.
      The photography is by Alex Shoots Buildings.

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      Gensler redesigns its own LA office to have “warmth and comfort” of home

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      The team at global architecture firm Gensler’s Los Angeles office has redesigned a floor of its workspace with a hospitality approach, as a pilot for the remaining spaces.

      The Gensler LA team’s renovated its space to give it more of the “warmth and comfort” that its staff became used to during its time working from home.
      The team at Gensler LA redesigned the third floor of their offices to better suit their current workplace needsThe studio’s return to the office post-pandemic came seven years into a 15-year lease of its spaces in Downtown Los Angeles, the firm had converted from an empty bank building in 2011 then expanded to two floors in an adjacent, connected structure.
      With a growing workforce and a desire to rethink the layout, functionality and appearance of the office, a group of the studio’s “next generation” of designers and strategists led an effort to redesign the interiors of the third floor.
      The pilot project incorporates several products from Gensler collaborations, including open shelving and communal tables”The look and feel of our space, though contemporary, lacked the warmth and comfort of the hospitality touches we integrate for our clients’ workspaces and that we had become accustomed to while working from home,” Gensler senior strategist Sarah Koos told Dezeen.

      “Coupled with the changing nature of hybrid work, the space necessitated a transformation that would support a renewed sense of a work-lifestyle.”
      A warm aesthetic that captures the essence of Los Angeles was chosen for the interiorsThe group spent a year listening and learning from surveys, workshops and feedback sessions in which each of the 500-plus employees was able to have a say about their future work environment.
      Many team members had been highly mobile even before hybrid working became popular, so the previous dedicated desk system seemed redundant.
      “Working from home for two years effectively rewired peoples’ expectations of their work environments, a sterile, single-use corporate office no longer spoke to the warmth, variety, and comfort they were afforded in their own homes,” said Koos.
      Plenty of lounge areas with comfy seating were created for employees to useThey therefore set about redesigning the offices with a focus on flexibility, communal work areas and presentation spaces.
      “Rather than confine our designers to a desk or a conference room, we developed a kit-of-parts inclusive of typical sit-stand workstations, communal tables, focus pods, booths, material layout islands, and more,” said Gensler senior designer Kirk Bairian.
      “Gensler is built on a studio system which is critical to our design culture, and each studio was able to use this kit-of-parts to customise their space to reflect the specific ways in which they work.”
      The team devised a “kit of parts” for the different studios to customise their own workspacesA warm, hospitality-forward aesthetic that mirrors the “informal but elevated, casual but curated” essence of Los Angeles was chosen.
      Materials including maple plywood, blackened metal and subtle textiles provide a backdrop for more colourful additions in the form of ever-changing pin-up display boards, styled shelving, artwork by local students and books from local creative businesses.

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      Lounge-style furniture and jewel-toned textiles are placed in the co-working areas to evoke a hotel lobby or coffee shop vibe.
      Several of Gensler’s furniture and fixture collaborations were also introduced, among them the communal tables and open shelcves from a product line created with Fantoni and custom focus pods from a partnership with Tangram’s Studio Other.
      Traditional conference rooms are available alongside more flexible spaces for group workSince the project completed in 2023, the data from badges suggest that employee office attendance has increased by 35 per cent for the studios located in the renovated pilot space, according to the firm.
      “Studios in the new space shared that they felt that working in the renovated space made them more productive, enabled more effective collaboration, and overall, greatly improved their in-office experience,” the team added.
      Maple plywood and blackened metal were among the materials chosen to give the space more of a hospitality feelGensler is the world’s largest architecture firm and has locations 53 locations globally. Its European head offices in Wapping, London, was longlisted in the business building category of Dezeen Awards 2020.
      In 2022, co-CEO Andy Cohen told Dezeen in an exclusive interview that architecture should abandon “top-down” management to improve working conditions.

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