Shenzhen Investment Office (Part II)

Location; Shenzhen, China
Area: 2,000 sq.ft.
Status: Completed June 2019

In collaboration with Michael He (The Office as a Project)

Photo: Xu Liang Leon

This project is an additional leisure and entertainment space for an investment office we also designed.

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(For us, this project was about creating a sense of subtle refinement, using unique materials and novel spaces. Because of the small size of the company and the client-focused nature of the work, we privileged the common amenity spaces—focusing particularly on the importance of developing an active team culture as a precursor for success. A variety of zones for relaxation and other non-work activities make up a large portion of this workplace, a supporting foil to the relatively location-sensitive nature of the work itself (due to computer hardware requirements/constraints).  

The challenge of the office area was to strike a balance between openness and enclosure, with the basic architectural unit of the ‘L-shaped partition’ employed to create nested spaces and moments of visual privacy—while eliminating closed doors and enabling constant communication and vocal collaboration. The varied sizes, heights and locations of the partitions allow many degrees of territorial and visual privacy. Textures, perspectives and one’s sense of enclosure all shift as one moves around the surprising and atmospheric space. Glazed panels, within each partition, with a custom-filtered dichroic film produce further novelty in colour and reflectivity—and an overall air of space-age comfort.

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Finally, growth and adaptations of the young business were considered in the office area. Custom square tables enable a variety of team seating and workstation arrangements, and building systems were provided for two possible future enclosed offices, with some of the L-shaped partitions acting to partially inscribing their outlines.)