Blades Office

Santa Barbara, CA, United States

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Blades Office

Santa Barbara, CA, United States

Firm

RNA+

Type

Residential ›

YEAR

2009

SIZE

0 sqft - 1000 sqft

It was very important to meet the client’s needs while designing in accordance with the existing vocabulary and concepts. This was achieved by using reflected/folded planes to emphasize the plan and section of the space, dynamic panels and counterweights to contrast the static planes of cabinetry, and visually heavy pieces complimented by delicate detailing. The fabrication and construction of the desk and work table was completed entirely by the three designers, Scot Bailey, Ryan Nearman and Reid Nystrom. All cabinetry was fabricated by means of a CNC router and lamination and finished with automotive paint, all sheet steel was cut by means of water jet and finished with an automotive clear coat, and all other components were fabricated by means of milling, welding, tapping and folding. The only premanufactured components were drawer slides, sheaves and fasteners.
The Blades Residence was designed by Morphosis Architects in the mid 90s. The spaces in the house are very unique, which has made it difficult for the clients to find furniture they feel fit the spaces appropriately. The furniture they do have is very basic, off the shelf, and does not fit well. We approached the owners and offered to do furniture design for them, and were commissioned to do the office loft. Through our extensive design discussion with the clients were given some rough shapes to work with which were changed and shifted. We built cabinetry that echoed the built in pieces separating living and dining downstairs. The work surface consisted of clear coated 10 gauge hot rolled steel plate referencing to the exposed steel columns of the home.

The desk surface sits on cabinetry on one side and a steel constructed filing cabinet on the other. The cabinetry contains display shelving toward the outside and storage space toward the inside hidden from view by a perforated front panel. The storage is accessed from the inner side by sliding a perforated panel back. This cabinet houses a drawer which is made of perforate with a sheet steel insert to retain smaller items. The file drawer is constructed of a steel tube frame and perforate drawers. The files hang on the drawer slides which double as the frame of the drawer, and since the drawer bodies do not support any weight they are left very light. The surface of the desk has two slots to access power outlets and keep cords organized, leaving the desk surface clutter free. The slot at the back allows for access to an electrical box. Behind the desk, the surface seems to bend down the wall to the floor conceptualizing the idea of a folded parallelogram.

The worktable has display shelves toward the large window and entry staircase, and storage toward the desk. The storage is hidden by perforated steel panels that slide vertically. The panels nearest the desk slide nearly to the floor to allow a for a client requested sewing machine drawer to be accessed. There are counterweights tucked into and through the display shelving connected to each panel. The counterweights are connected to each panel through a complex matrix of bike brake cables and pulleys recessed into the underside of the surface. This allows the motion and mechanism of the panels vertical movement to be explicit and placed on display.