Designed
for a full service, graphic design, and branding agency, this interior build
out was to become more than an arrangement of rooms within an existing
building. The owners wanted their office
to serve not only as a place of employment; but also as a flexible,
collaborative, and focused working environment that could function as a
creative workshop where raw ideas could materialize.
The space
is part of the mixed use storefront for the public parking garage serving
downtown Bozeman.
The hub of the city’s public bus service, an area of intense vehicular and
pedestrian traffic, is located directly in front of the entry. With a wall of glass facing the bus stop
loading area and busy street it became clear that privacy would be a key component
of the project. The architect faced the challenge
of providing a creative working environment and minimizing the distractions of
the activity outside.
A simple
rectangular volume, the conference room, placed in the center of the space, is
the only enclosed room within the work studio.
It stands as an anchor for the many creative activities of the
studio. Its glass walls bring in ample
natural lighting and a large movable wood partition can be positioned to ensure
privacy when needed. Two primary work
spaces are arranged on either side of the conference room. An area behind the conference room acts as a
staging area for photo shoots and houses the kitchen and break room. A raised
floor elevates a portion of the work studio above the street level. A screen of
stacked rustic timbers protects the space from constant exposure to the
activity on the street. This wall of
timbers is continued within the space to further divide the studio into
separate work areas. From the outside
the horizontal lines and simple rhythm of the rustic wall reinforce the linear
movement and rhythm of the busy sidewalk and one way street, providing a visual
barrier with a strong sculptural presence.
The studio
space at 30 East Mendenhall is home to
game-changing ideas, developed in an open collaborative work environment. The sculptural presence created by the timber
wall helps keep the creative energy in and the distractions of the streetscape
out, while giving people walking by something to ponder.