abercrombie and fitch office campus and distribution center

Columbus, OH, United States

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nickerson / wakefield residence

abercrombie and fitch office campus and distribution center

Columbus, OH, United States

Firm

anderson architects

Type

Commercial › Office
Industrial › Factory

YEAR

2002

SIZE

1,000,000 +

This
project offers an opportunity to converse with a magical site and an enlightened client resulting in a constructed story about Abercrombie &
Fitch. The story begins with a choreographed entry through the site and a
guided tour of its’ innate qualities: a discovered Native American
archeological site; open fields and meadows; dense woodland; wetlands and
ravines; clear streams. Passing through a translucent and glowing “un-covered”
bridge, the office campus buildings reveal themselves through the trees as they
adjust to the landscape and topography by bending around trees and stretching
towards scenic views. Parking, located behind the office campus, consists of
smaller outdoor “parking-rooms” that maintain existing tree-cover and minimize
paving. Employees enter the office campus through the forest on narrow paths,
the woods acting as a filter to keep cars out and allow people through.

  The quest
for natural light, views and a ”village in the forest” led to a bent and
“broken” configuration that snakes through the woods, cracking open at points
where people gather. This meandering
form grips the immediate site and organizes the cluster of additional
structures that complete the program.

  The office
campus is unified by an external street containing outdoor workplaces, studio
sheds, covered walkways and a fire-circle.
This street is further defined by entrance towers, “flying” dormers,
changes in materials and ‘slices’ carved out of the sheds, all of which enliven
the relationship of employees to the site and, more importantly, to each other.A wood-clad
“tower of power” housing the M/E/P plant anchors the eastern end of the street
while an outdoor “design” deck overlooking a ravine marks the western end. Adjacent to the tower is the rusting steel
dining “barn” and fitness center that faces an open “common”. The CEO area,
which includes conference rooms and a welcoming ‘meeting’ porch, is located
front and center from the main entrance to the office campus, under an elevated
“lookout” tower.

  Wood
surfaces help define where people gather or enter. The main entrance to the office campus
consists of a covered wood-clad ‘porch’ while another important entry is
located beneath a large “slipping” wooden-framed dormer to provide exterior
shelter. An exterior stair wraps around
an outdoor fireplace serving as a theatrical scaffold for meetings, complete
with a roof opening. Finally, a
fire-circle suggests that work and play co-exist, that the outdoor spaces are
meant to be used and not just admired.

  The
interior landscape of the buildings consist of clusters of large worktables in
open, light-filled sheds. Enclosed
spaces within these areas are limited to special offices and conference areas,
often occurring as tall towers flanking two-story voids. Storage spaces, small meeting rooms and
display areas create a train of “subway cars” that glide through the sheds and
create accessible common areas.

  This is a
workplace that promotes interaction and innovation. It takes clues from the language used to
describe the A&F brand: relevance, lifestyle and authenticity. It is a response to the evolution of the
office: now, more than just a place to work.