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Local art collective Xpan has created a multi-purpose creative studio called Xpan.Ep.1 in Mexico City using raw steel, aluminium, and transparent polycarbonate panels for its interior. More
Designer Neri Oxman has unveiled a studio in Midtown Manhattan designed with architecture studio Foster + Partners that houses a production workshop and wet lab.
Oxman unveiled the lab for her studio, Oxman, in a building originally designed by American architect Albert Kahn as a car manufacturing plant and renovated by Rafael Viñoly Architects to house shops and offices.
Neri Oxman has unveiled a studio designed with British architecture studio Foster + PartnersOxman’s team worked with Foster + Partners to design a two-storey studio on the 9th and 10th floors of the building.
The 36,000-square-foot space (3,345 square metres) is characterised by white-painted walls and columns, and is largely open – most of the dividing walls are glass. The lower floor features design offices, a library, kitchen and lounge, while the upper floor holds the wet lab and production studio.
“Every detail of this project has been developed in conjunction with Neri and her team, reflecting Oxman’s holistic approach that spans scales and disciplines,” said Foster + Partners founder Norman Foster.
“Both levels of the new studio have their own distinctive characters and contain a range of highly adaptable workspaces and labs, which enhance creativity and will become an epicenter of world-leading research.”
The studio is located in a building designed by Louis Kahn and renovated by Rafael Viñoly ArchitectsOxman said that the design of the studio was meant to be open, flexible and technical to enable collaboration between the designers, scientists, architects and other employees who work there.
She said that the space was meant to facilitate the actualisation of her The Krebs Cycle of Creativity – a rendition of German-British scientist Hans Krebs’ diagram depicting stages of energy generation in organisms.
It is two storeys and contains a wet lab and central glass staircase”The dream for this building, this lab was to embody the diagram,” said Oxman.
“The lab looks clean and nice on the inside, but inside, packed in the ceiling and in the ground, are conduits that are embedded for insert allowing access to data, to power, to gasses that feed the workstations – there’s 70 miles worth of Ethernet and an optical cable for cloud computing.”
It is characterised by white-painted walls, glass dividers and wooden furnitureThe entrance space for the studio is a central atrium lit from above by panel lights in the ceiling that conceal the complex mechanical systems, including over 100 miles of colour-coded cabling to enable high-speed data.
One side of the first floor holds the design studio where rows of custom-produced wooden desks run perpendicular to the floor-to-ceiling glass windows that overlook the high-rises of Hell’s Kitchen. A garden terrace with walkways and plants runs outside the windows.
Conduits in the walls allow for access to data, power and gasses according to OxmanOpposite the windows run a series of private offices, completely lined in glass, with vitrines featuring samples of Oxman’s work, serving as visible dividers between each wood-backed space.
On the other side of the first level, past a central stair, is a long conference table used for displaying work and models, and behind that a series of enclosed spaces for respite.
It is meant to foster collaboration between employeesThe floating staircase was custom-designed for the space and has a single stringer at the top of the space and interlocking glass panels.
The second storey holds a production workshop with robotic arms and 3D printers to fabricate shoes made from polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) – plastic-like molecules derived from bacteria.
The interior is largely openAcross an atrium is a wet lab with custom Krion benches. Opposite the windows are a series of “capsules” that are heavily mechanized and can be used to simulate natural environments.
According to Oxman, the studio is currently working on three primary areas: urban design and architecture, product design and molecular biology.
The space was meant to facilitate the actualisation of The Krebs Cycle of CreativityOne of the biology products is a device called ALEF, which uses sensors to monitor biodiversity by training it to intake biogenic volatile organic compounds – described as “smells” – to provide data about environments.
“From a biodiversity chamber designed to study and heal a struggling ecosystem to a ‘scent computer’ designed to concoct a functionalized fragrance with no harm to the environment, we seek to advance our understanding of the natural world while offering alternatives to methods of designing molecular goods that rely on monocropping,” said Oxman.
“In fact, one of the most ecologically biodiverse environments in New York City currently thrives in our lab.”
Neri Oxman and Bill Ackman told to alter Norman Foster design for their New York penthouse
The opening of the studio corresponds with the announcement of this endeavor, as well as the bioplastic shoes and a series of modelling systems for urban design based on what Oxman calls “ecological programming” – AI-driven modelling programs used to make planning decisions to optimise for nonhuman, as well as human, life.
“The Lab’s organizational ‘parti sketch’ perfectly mirrors the organizational and operational logic of the company, enabling tight physical and visual connectivity across zones dedicated to hardware, software, and wetware design,” said Oxman. “In other words, one can design, build, and deploy a bioreactor in a matter of hours.”
“We are a design and innovation company,” she said. “We operate across scales, across disciplines and application domains, to target and to heal three broken industries.”
The opening corresponds with a biology product called ALEFOxman, who is a former tenured professor at MIT and led The Mediated Matter Research Group, is known for her experiments in novel materials for construction such as melanin and silk.
Earlier this year Oxman was caught up in an academic plagiarism row with Business Insider reporting that her dissertation was “marred by plagiarism”. She responded to allegations in a statement on X, formerly Twitter, saying she “omitted quotation marks for certain work that I used”.
The photography is by Nicholas Calcott
Project credits:
Collaborators: Foster + Partners, Adamson Associates Architects, Sciame HomesConsultants: Benchmark Woodworking, Cosentini Associates, Front Inc., Hollander Design, Jacobs Associates, Pentagram, Percival Scientific, Inc., Persak & Wurmfeld, Shen Milsom & Wilke, LLC, Silman, Spiralis, Syzygy 3, Inc., Tillotson & Associates, TKO Project Management
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A simple steel framework incorporates both desks and storage in the self-designed all-white studio of architecture firm Ministry of Design in Singapore.
With the MOD Workshop, studio founder Colin Seah set out to create a different type of workspace from Ministry of Design’s award-winning Bar Code office, which the practice occupied from 2010 to 2023.
Ministry of Design has designed a new office for itself in SingaporeThe new office is less than a third of the size, with a focus on facilitating collaboration between coworkers who don’t spend as much time in the office as they did before the coronavirus pandemic.
“In line with MOD’s transition towards a technologically-enabled work environment, which allows for most designers to work remotely, the Workshop dispenses with typical workplace conventions,” Seah said.
The space is divided by a steel framework that incorporates desks and storage”Instead, it devotes 60 per cent of the layout to creative face-to-face collaboration because when we do need to meet in person, we really want it to make it count,” he continued.
The 93-square-metre space is divided into a series of interconnected areas for collaboration, as well as hot desks and utility spaces, via a three-dimensional metal framework.
A wall clad with cable trays allows objects to be attached with hooks or magnetThe minimal scaffold incorporates screens made from frosted polycarbonate and fluted glass that allow light to pass through, generating a bright and layered aesthetic within the workspace.
The same materials were used to form shelves and worktops, with solid aluminium rods inserted into the polycarbonate panels to allow them to support heavier items.
One of the main workspaces is centred around what MOD describes as a counter-height “war room” table that can be used for shared creative activities as well as design discussions and presentations.
Ministry of Design creates lush “banking conservatory” for Citibank Singapore
The table’s surface is made from frosted tempered glass that, along with other glossy and mirrored materials, helps to bounce light around the interior and enhance the spacious feel.
The metal framework incorporates an adjustable lighting system above the table that can simulate different light conditions, while large windows minimise the requirement for artificial lighting during the daytime.
To one side of the table is a wall clad with cable trays, allowing objects to be attached with hooks or magnets. Shelving along the opposite wall forms part of a material and artefact library.
The interior is almost entirely whiteThe library shelves span the full length and width of the Workshop, ensuring the designers always have easy access to materials used to inspire and stimulate creativity.
A row of hot desks along one wall and a meeting table near the entrance provide alternative areas for working and collaboration, with utility spaces including a pantry, printer and storage tucked away in a corner.
In contrast to the bright-white interior of the workspace, a compact restroom concealed behind a mirrored door is designed as a private sanctuary lined with black tiles.
In contrast, the bathroom is clad in black tilesMOD has completed more than 140 projects since it was founded by Seah in 2004, offering clients a holistic service that often includes architecture, product design, interior architecture, branding or landscaping.
“We love to question where the inherent potential in contemporary design lies and then to disturb the ways they are created or perceived, redefining the world around us in relevant and innovative ways, project by project,” Seah said.
Previous MOD projects include an office in a conservatory-like atrium filled with tropical plants and a co-living space with all-white interiors.
The photography is by Jovian Lim.
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From converted garages to compact new-builds, we have rounded up eight studios that provide retreat and solitude for their owners in their own back gardens.
Featuring reclaimed materials, charred-timber facades and pared-back interiors, this list of garden spaces includes a converted workshop completed by designer Paul Westwood in the UK and a studio centred by a tree-shaped concrete structure in Belgium.
Photo by Lorenzo ZandriShou Sugi Bangers, UK, by Unknown Works
Charred timber wraps around this music studio completed by Unknown Works in the garden of a London home.
Named Shou Sugi Bangers, the studio’s scalloped wooden cladding provides a series of nooks for external seating space, while the workspace is housed inside.
Find out more about Shou Sugi Bangers ›
Photo by James RetriefGardenhide Studio, UK, by Commonbond Architects
Commonbond Architects designed and built its own studio at the end of a garden in London that aims to showcase the potential of hempcrete as a building material.
The space was constructed from a cuboidal timber frame and reclaimed materials and is topped with a mono-pitched roof.
Find out more about Gardenhide Studio ›
Photo by Johnny UmansT(uin)Huis Atelier, Belgium, by Atelier Janda Vanderghote
Situated at the end of a garden in Ghent, Atelier Janda Vanderghote used simple materials such as concrete, brick and timber to create the T(uin)Huis Atelier.
The studio features a rhythmic facade made up of copper-toned framing, while the interior is defined by an open-plan layout organised around a tree-shaped concrete structure.
Find out more about T(uin)Huis Atelier ›
Photo by Loes van DuijvendijkStudio Shed, The Netherlands, by LMNL Office
Architecture studio LMNL Office completed the Studio Shed outbuilding as an addition to a home in Brabant, the Netherlands.
Crafted from prefabricated timber panels, the garden studio features a rectangular, compact form that was clad with earth-coloured clay tiles to echo the tiles of the main house.
Find out more about Studio Shed ›
Photo courtesy of TEDSThe Garden Retreat, UK, by The Environmental Design Studio
Reclaimed materials were used to create The Garden Retreat, which was added to a compact site in Cambridge by London practice The Environmental Design Studio.
The studio’s facade is finished with stacked slate tiles bordered by concrete slabs. A waterfall feature and bird bath were also integrated into the facade to enhance biodiversity.
Find out more about The Garden Retreat ›
Photo by Daniel MulhearnBush Studio, Australia, by Dane Taylor Design
Dane Taylor Design completed this multipurpose garden studio in New South Wales, which features a compact form clad with charred wood.
Named Bush Studio, the space serves as a private retreat nestled into the surrounding landscape and is complete with clerestory windows and a mono-pitched roof.
Find out more about Bush Studio ›
Photo by Simon KennedyDark Matter, UK, by Hyperspace
Converted from a suburban garage, this garden studio in Hertfordshire, England, features a charred-timber facade formed of 850 pieces of wood that doubles as an insect hotel.
A pivoting door opens up to the studio interior which contains a spacious workspace animated by two perforated “light chimneys”.
Find out more about Dark Matter ›
Photo by Chris WhartonGarden Office, UK, by Paul Westwood
Architect Paul Westwood used a pared-back material palette to complete the conversion of the dilapidated garage of his London home into a workshop and studio.
The existing garage was stripped back to its structural shell and features a large skylight, underfloor heating and a natural material palette.
Find out more about Garden Office ›
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An old bookshop in Berlin is now home to the studio of architecture and interior design practice Gisbert Pöppler, which incorporates the building’s grand arched doorways and other original features.
The office is situated on Karl Marx Allee, a major boulevard lined with buildings designed in the socialist classicism architectural style of the 1950s.
Staff desks in the Gisbert Pöppler office sit near the building’s entranceGisbert Pöppler’s workspace had previously been located in Berlin’s Kreuzberg neighbourhood, set above a row of nightclubs.
“We had an amazing view of the city up there and enjoyed being in the midst of it all,” the practice told Dezeen.
Archways offer views of the showroom at the building’s rear”We outgrew our space though and coincidently our landlords decided to completely renovate and add-on to the building, so we would have had to leave for a while anyway,” the studio added. “This was when we discovered that the former bookstore was available.”
The bookstore had been left in a “depressing” state.
But as soon as the Gisbert Pöppler team moved in, they sought to find ways to transform it into an efficient office and show space for their range of furnishings and textiles, all while preserving the site’s original features like its arched doorways and terrazzo flooring.
Furnishings are displayed on carpeted platformsA formal work area with desks and computers has been created directly beside the office’s entrance, allowing staff to greet and interact with visitors as they walk in.
Shelving here that originally stored books now holds material samples, image mood boards and other project-related paraphernalia.
Meetings can be held in the next room along, which is centred by Gisbert Pöppler’s reflective aluminium Cherry table.
The office’s literature corner has been painted bright pinkThen follows the showroom, where pieces are displayed on purple carpeted platforms that the practice created in collaboration with Swiss rug makers Rückstuhl.
“Preservation regulations were intense for this place, so our solutions are somewhat unconventional,” the practice said. “We built platforms to define spaces and solve technical situations without harming the building’s fabric.”
Hanging utensils decorate the office’s kitchenTwo further spaces branch off from here: a conference area for larger staff gatherings, and a “literature corner” filled with inspirational reading material.
Unlike the rest of the office, which is painted an icy-blue shade, this corner has been completed in a vivid pink hue to offset the lack of natural light in this area.
A dresser in the kitchen contains porcelain handed down from Pöppler’s grandmotherAdditionally, there’s a kitchen on-site where staff can prepare and eat their meals at lunchtime, featuring simple white cabinetry and hanging utensils.
To one side of the room stands an ornate dresser, restored by Gisbert Pöppler’s eponymous founder as a young man. Inside, the cabinet is filled with an array of Meissen porcelain tableware collected by his grandmother.
There’s also a basement where the practice keeps more materials and client orders before they’re shipped out.
More materials and furnishings are stored in the office’s basementGisbert Pöppler has worked on a number of residential projects around Berlin.
One such example is an apartment in the city’s Mitte borough, designed to be like a “tailor-made suit” with one-off furnishings and bespoke fixtures that suit the owner’s particular needs.
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Design studio Space Available has transformed a former warehouse in Bali into a workshop and office space featuring a mezzanine clad in offcuts from its plastic recycling projects.
Situated in an industrial suburb of the island’s capital Denpasar, the building houses the first physical workspace for Space Available, which creates products and clothing from ocean plastic and other waste materials.
Space Available has designed its own studio and workshop in BaliThe organisation, founded in 2020 by English designer Daniel Mitchell, wanted to create a studio that can act as a creative hub for hosting activities centred around the themes of recycling and closed-loop design principles that aim to keep waste materials in use.
The space was designed to accommodate recycling machines, upcycling stations and a bio-design lab created in collaboration with MycoWorks – a Californian company that develops materials from mushroom mycelium for brands including Hermès.
The studio makes products from recycled plasticMitchell and Space Available’s in-house architect Andika Permana oversaw the renovation of the 500-square-metre building, defined by typical industrial features including grey breeze block walls.
“The raw warehouse space underwent a transformation of refinement to make it feel less industrial,” Mitchell told Dezeen.
“We skimmed and painted the walls white along with painting the previously unfinished metal ceiling. Our aim was to create a clean, white, almost gallery-like atmosphere.”
Offcuts from the production process were used to clad the stairsTowards the rear of the space, a double-height steel structure was erected to house the laboratory as well as an office on the upper level. This volume is clad in waste plastic offcuts that are repurposed from the studio’s homeware and furniture production.
“The blue ‘marble’ structure stands out against the clean white backdrop, creating a dramatic ‘structure within a structure’ effect that really pops out as you enter the studio,” Mitchell added.
Space Available and Peggy Gou create furniture from “heartbreaking” plastic waste
The use of offcuts fits with Space Available’s mission to “change the perception of waste through elevated design”.
In addition to forming the facade, the material is used to create shelving, furniture, speakers and other amenities throughout the building.
The warehouse’s remaining open floor area functions as a flexible space for building and exhibiting projects or hosting events. Large shelving units at one end are used to store and display the studio’s furniture and archival products.
The studio’s sheet material was also used to form various furnishingsSpace Available was founded during the coronavirus pandemic by Mitchell, who moved to Bali with his wife in 2014 after working in the fashion industry for several years.
Shocked by the global plastic waste crisis that is evident in the volume of pollution washing up on Indonesia’s beaches, he wanted to develop a design studio that would explore circular design principles and revolutionise the perception of ocean plastic and waste.
The organisation has recycled more than six million plastic bottles in its projects, which range from large-scale sculptural installations to furniture and fashion design.
A shelving unit displays the studio’s furniture and archival productsIts furniture and solid surface sheet materials are made from waste plastic collected from rivers and landfills. The material is shredded, added to a mould and baked to create panels featuring vibrant colours and patterns.
Space Available previously collaborated with South Korean DJ Peggy Gou to create a chair made from 20 kilograms of recycled plastic with an integrated compartment for storing records.
The recycled plastic resembles colourful marbleIn 2022, the studio opened a dedicated gallery, recycling station and upcycling bar called Museum of Space Available in the coastal town of Canggu, which features
The building features a facade made from 200,000 recycled plastic bottles and showcases the work of the studio alongside projects by other artists, designers and scientists.
Another Indonesian organisation giving new life to plastic waste is Sungai Watch, which recently launched its first furniture designs made using discarded plastic bags.
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From cantilevered shelves to customisable pegboards, our latest lookbook rounds up eight examples of garden studios with storage designed to make the most of limited space.
Garden studios are becoming increasingly popular in homes around the world, prompted largely by the evergrowing trend of remote work.
Often slotted into small spaces, these structures typically have compact footprints and require efficient storage solutions to keep them clutter-free.
The examples in this lookbook demonstrate some of the ways storage can be suitably integrated within a garden studio, helping save valuable space within their small footprints.
This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration, see previous lookbooks featuring Mexican holiday homes, full-length curtains and living spaces with swings.
Photo by Wai Ming NgCork Study, UK, by Surman Weston
Birch shelves and twin desks cantilever from the walls of Cork Study, which Surman Weston created in the narrow garden of a home in north London.
The set-up was designed to help maximise space within the compact studio, which measures just 13 square metres and was created as a workspace for a musician and a seamstress.
The two desks, complete with their own cubby holes, are broken by a long vertical window in the rear wall, illuminating the workspaces with natural light.
Find out more about Cork Study ›
Photo by Nancy ZhouNightlight, New Zealand, by Fabric
Green storage boxes on wheels slot neatly below the workbench of this outbuilding in New Zealand, which occupies the future garden of a home being developed on the site.
There are also slender slats mounted to the wooden framework of the 10-square-metre structure, forming minimalist shelves from which tools can be hung.
Find out more about Nightlight ›
Photo by Ashlea WesselThe Garden Studio, Canada, by Six Four Five A
The founder of architecture studio Six Four Five A built storage into the wooden shell of his tiny studio, which he created in the garden of his Toronto home.
Exposed vertical studs double as supports for shelves and a large standing desk made from birch plywood along one side, preventing cluttering up the 9.3-square-metre space.
Find out more about The Garden Studio ›
Photo by Jonas AdolfsenWriter’s Cottage, Norway, by Jarmund/Vigsnæs Architects
This cabin-like studio sits at the end of a garden in Oslo, where it acts as a compact and secluded workspace for the owner who is a writer.
Among its storage solutions is a plywood staircase that incorporates a shelving system beneath it, leading up to a mezzanine sleeping area that tucks beneath its pitched roof.
Find out more about Writer’s Cottage ›
Photo by Wai Ming NgWriter’s Shed, UK, by Surman Weston
Another project by Surman Weston on the list is the Writer’s Shed, a shingle-clad garden studio designed as a writing retreat for an author.
Inside, a cluster of shelves has been built around the chimney of the wood-burning stove, which is used to heat the compact structure. While providing valuable storage space, they are also intended as “a centrepiece for the client to store his library of books”, Surman Weston said.
Find out more about Writer’s Shed ›
Photo by Sarah BurtonTerrazzo Studio, UK, by Sonn
In east London, architect Tim Robinson designed and built himself a little studio and workshop at the end of his garden.
The narrow workshop contains a line of storage units raised above the floor, alongside a large pegboard for storing tools. Next door in the studio space, a rear wall of cabinets incorporates a concealed fold-down bed, enabling the space to become a guest bedroom.
Find out more about Terrazzo Studio ›
Photo courtesy of Boano PrišmontasMy Room in the Garden, UK, by Boano Prišmontas
This modular pod is a prototype for a garden studio, developed by London studio Boano Prišmontas in response to an increase in people working from home prompted by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Inside, the plywood structure can be fitted out with customisable elements including pegboards from which desks, shelves and storage can be hung.
“My Room in the Garden was created with comfort and customisability in mind,” said the studio. “We wanted to allow people to be able to decide what their interior would look like or how much storage they would have, and we do that by creating a system of interchangeable elements.”
Find out more about My Room in the Garden ›
Photo by Shannon McGrathWriter’s Shed, Australia, by Matt Gibson
This deceptively spacious garden studio that architect Matt Gibson created in Melbourne is hidden behind ivy-covered walls.
An angular desk slots into one corner, with one side nestled below two generous high-level shelving units on the walls. Plywood was used across all of the surfaces, giving the interior a unified look that adds to the sense of spaciousness.
Find out more about Writer’s Shed ›
This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration, see previous lookbooks featuring Mexican holiday homes, full-length curtains and living spaces with swings.
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A pared-back palette of raw materials creates a calm backdrop for PSLab’s lighting products inside the brand’s Berlin workshop and showroom space, designed in collaboration with Belgian firm B-bis architecten.
The newly opened studio occupies the ground floor and basement of a 1907 residential building in the city’s Charlottenburg district.
PSLab has opened a new workshop and showroom in BerlinPSLab, which designs and manufactures light fixtures for architectural projects, set out to create a showroom where customers can experience lighting effects in a home-like environment.
“PSLab is not a digital platform where clients pick and buy products,” the company’s founder Dimitri Saddi told Dezeen. “Therefore the physical space as a ‘home’ is most important for one-on-one communication.”
“In Berlin, as with all our studios, we wanted to design a canvas to show the quality of our light and to show the process of our bespoke design approach by integrating a material library of endless opportunities and possibilities.”
The space includes a materials library with a movable ladderWorking together with B-bis architecten, the design team looked to create a contemporary space that contrasts with Charlottenburg’s classical architecture whilst retaining references to common elements like colonnades, arches and symmetrical forms.
The entrance takes the form of a large zinc-and-glass sliding door that is set into the facade of the building on Niebuhrstrasse. Moving the door aside reveals a full-height opening that welcomes visitors into the studio.
The interior was designed to present the brand’s lighting to its best advantageInside, a double-height space with a six-metre-high ceiling allows lighting products to be hung in various heights and configurations.
Arched openings on either side of the staircase void lead through to a garden room that looks onto a leafy courtyard. Daylight streams into the space through large windows to create a tranquil atmosphere.
JamesPlumb converts Victorian tannery into London HQ for PSLab
The workshop space includes a materials library where visitors can touch and explore the physical qualities of the brand’s lighting products. A movable ladder provides access to items on the library’s upper rows.
The cosy basement level is a place for informal conversations with clients. A projector in this parlour space also allows the team to display the company’s extensive digital library.
The basement serves as a cosy loungeThroughout the studio, PSLab chose materials and finishes including lime wash, concrete, zinc and textiles that focus attention on how the space is lit rather than its architectural features to create a kind of “sacred place for light”.
“It is all about monochromatics and textures, which are specific to the location,” said Mario Weck, a partner at PSLab GmbH. “The atmosphere lets people focus on our approach.”
Gantries provide support for various light sourcesOn the ceiling of both the front room and garden room is a grey-steel gantry that helps unify the spaces whilst supporting various light sources as well as technical elements, much like on a theatre stage.
Furniture is mostly built in, with simple cushions providing casual seating while cylindrical wooden side tables and coffee tables offer somewhere to place a cup or catalogue.
The showroom is set in Berlin’s CharlottenburgPSLab has studios in Antwerp, Bologna, London, Stuttgart and Beirut, where the firm originated. For its UK headquarters, the company commissioned JamesPlumb to convert a Victorian tannery into a space that evokes the “quiet brutalism” of the former industrial building.
Previously, the lighting brand has collaborated with Parisian studio Tolila+Gilliland on the design of an Aesop store in London featuring felt-covered walls and slim black pendant lights.
The photography is by Nate Cook.
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Texas studio Method Architecture has completed an office for itself in Houston with maximalist design, vibrant colours and a mural at its centre.
The 8,612-square foot (800-square metre) studio was completed in 2023 with a reception area, open office plan, private and collaborative meeting spaces and staff lounges.
Method Architecture has completed its self-designed studioLocated in the mixed-use East River development, designed by architecture studio Page, the office was designed to serve as an inspiration source for the studio’s clients.
“Our approach was to pursue maximalism with the goal of creating an environment where our clients would feel safe expressing their bold and innovative ideas with us,” Ashley Bettcher, Research and Design Specialist with Method Architecture told Dezeen.
The office was designed to serve as an inspiration source”Creativity has no limits and great design doesn’t necessarily need to cost more. Method’s new Houston office perfectly encapsulates that mantra.”
The “ego-free” focus of the design is a nearly 50-foot multi-wall mural by local artist David Maldonado, known for creating nearly 20 pieces of public artwork throughout Houston.
David Maldonado created a multi-wall mural for the studioWith pops of magenta, cobalt, and yellow, the mural features icons from the city and state like the skyline, a rocket for Johnson Space Center, a bluebonnet as the Texas state flower, and the neighbouring Buffalo Bayou.
The artwork also slips in custom motifs representing the studio, such as Method’s rubber duck mascot.
Light grey flower-like acoustic baffles hang from the ceiling”This feature piece of artwork helps set the tone for the remainder of the office including bold colors, geometric patterns and shapes and a secondary mural designed and installed by Maldanado featuring drip paint in mirroring colorways located at the back of the office,” the team said.
The mural is complemented by a 3D-printed wall installation behind the reception desk composed of the studio’s signature “M” logo and the raw ceiling with exposed mechanical lines all painted a vibrant shade of fuchsia.
Clients pass through a half-arched portalLight grey flower-like acoustic baffles hang from the ceiling adding to the maximalist design. Light blue bicycles are mounted on one wall as another unique installation.
From the reception area lounge, clients pass through a half-arched portal – created with custom millwork and embedded lights – into the main office space which includes rows of desks over custom greyscale carpet.
Hotel desk stations accommodate hybrid work stylesHotel desk stations accommodate hybrid work styles for both in-office and at-home work.
“Cozy architectural work booths are nestled amid the bustling breakroom and office areas, offering a quiet refuge for more private work, private conversations or meals with coworkers,” the team said.
Ten maximalist interiors that are saturated with colours and patterns
The workspace is flanked by six meeting rooms: a large creative conference space, three medium-sized conference rooms and two smaller huddle spaces.
The all-white conference room was left intentionally blank to showcase the client’s material selections with tunable white lights to adjust the light temperature for each project.
An M-shaped window cutout opens the conference room to the rest of the officeAn M-shaped window cutout opens the conference room to the rest of the office.
In the break room, bright blue suede fabric adorns the walls to provide an unexpected texture and pale blue lamp shades – reminiscent of the shape of inverted cupcake liners – serve as a geometric juxtaposition to the rounded banquette boxes.
Bright blue suede fabric adorns the walls in the break room”Plush, psychedelic-inspired fabrics in meeting booths and distinctive light fixtures keep the space feeling light and fun to inspire creative design,” the studio said.
In addition to being designed for flexible workflows and teams, the space features multiple sustainable and WELL features like ample daylighting, repurposed materials and ergonomic furniture.
Other recently completed projects in Houston include Nelson Byrd Woltz’s grassed park that bridges a six-lane highway and Modu’s design for a wellness building with a self-cooling exterior.
The photography is by Ana Larranaga, Method Architecture.
Project credits:
Architecture: Method ArchitectureMEP: Telios EngineeringGeneral contractor: Burton ConstructionFurniture: AGILE Interiors, MDI, OP,Flooring: Interface, Shaw ContractTile: Trinity Surfaces, La NovaTextiles: Knoll TextilesMasonry: Upchurch KimbroughDemountable partitions: DIRTTCountertops: CAMBRIAMural: David MaldonadoLighting: Lighting Associates Inc.Signage: ARIA Signs
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