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Architects: Studio 10
- Area: 705 m²
- Year: 2023
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Photographs:Chao Zhang
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Lead Architects: Shi Zhou
Text description provided by the architects. Located in the OCT Loft Creative Park in Shenzhen, this project transforms part of an industrial building into a dynamic office space for a company specializing in outdoor sports.
The company aims for the office space to embody the essence of a sports-related business while catering to the dynamic needs of a youthful team. Our initial research and interviews revealed that most employees, given the outdoor nature of the business, are more at ease working in open, unstructured environments like parks, finding traditional office settings somewhat alien. This preference results in a low utilization rate of fixed desks, while spaces for meetings, receptions, and casual discussions are in higher demand. Therefore, there is a need to create a versatile space that not only promotes the well-being and relaxation of the employees but also supports various operational modes, thus cultivating an environment conducive to ideation, creativity, communication, and interdepartmental collaboration. Moreover, in light of the company's significant need for external engagements and displays, the design of the office space will also embody the corporate culture's humanistic care and the new flexible work models it nurtures.
Our vision seeks to blur, and then disrupt the conventional delineation between interior and exterior spaces, ensuring that employees, upon their intermittent returns to the indoor workspace, continue to experience the vitality, natural light, flowing air, and verdancy of outdoor settings. Inspired by the concept of 'parks' as man-made natural spaces within urban settings, and leveraging Shenzhen's status as a subtropical city rich in vegetation and parks—particularly the OCT area, renowned for its densely tree-lined avenues and expansive green spaces, we envisage the transformation of closed office rooms into representations of architectural and structural elements within nature, with public areas mirroring the expansive openness of outdoor forests and meadows.
Office partitions were organized along the walls, emulating "buildings/structures," thus releasing a substantially central area for an "outdoor" public green park alongside spaces for natural light, views and ventilation, designated for open-office, break-out and reception areas. This central green zone seamlessly integrates with the surrounding office areas through a trio of colonnaded interfaces, ensuring acoustic privacy while inviting the "outdoors" inside through the colonnade's full-height glass windows.
The entrance is designed as a curving path, transitioning visitors from the gloom of traditional corridors to a luminous indoor park.
The terrain features undulating hills covered in sports turf, peppered with gazebos, benches, and other elements that fulfill various functions from waiting areas to exhibition spaces. Stone pathways interlink these functional zones, enhancing the park-like atmosphere. Sunlight streams through sheer blinds and the colonnade's glass, casting a gentle glow reminiscent of an art gallery adorned with monumental stone sculptures and historical remnants.
Adjustable lighting in the communal areas replicates the nuanced shifts of daylight, setting the stage for evening events with dimmed, warm tones that transform the space into a lively social hub.
