Excerpt: G-loop is an office interior project designed by the architectural firm Say Architects. After being invited by WARM STUDIO, say architects is dedicated to constructing an office headquarters located on top of Infinitus Plaza in Guangzhou. The project has helped the six departments affiliated with WARM STUDIO to create brand-new office space. At the same time, it is also a new exploration of the edge of urban working. The Infinitus Plaza in Guangzhou is the posthumous work of Zaha Hadid, the famous Architect in Britain.
Project Description
[Text as submitted by Architect] After being invited by WARM STUDIO, say architects is dedicated to constructing an office headquarters located on top of Infinitus Plaza in Guangzhou. The project has helped the six departments affiliated with WARM STUDIO to create brand-new office space. At the same time, it is also a new exploration of the edge of urban working. The Infinitus Plaza in Guangzhou is the posthumous work of Zaha Hadid, the famous Architect in Britain. Moreover, it is situated on the original site of Guangzhou Baiyun Airport and the landmark architecture in the central business zone of the Baiyun district.
01 Fashion based on digital social media
FREE WORK / BASIC WORK/ NO WORK
The virtual world plays a more crucial part in human life along with the rapid development of science and technology. In such a background, mobile phones have become indispensable for people entering such a digital world. Therefore, the future prospecting and conception related to mobile phones will trigger the group’s pondering on bag design. Everything is wrapped in bags of the past. However, bags are merely required to hold a mobile phone now. In the future, they will be decorative accessories. Say architects also propose the concept specified as “exploring the edge of the urban working” for the group space, which has been newly constructed regarding the “fashion based on digital social media” concept proposed by WARM STUDIO.
In terms of the traditional office space, it takes output value as the objective, which makes the per capita area limited inside each work unit. Nonetheless, the current working modes for different work categories and age groups are undergoing gradual transformations with the youth-oriented employment in companies. Firstly, the space is further split into three elliptical belts from inside to the outside dimensions on the basis of work freedom, respectively the FREE WORK, BASIC WORK and NO WORK accordingly.
BASIC WORK: It contains six significant departments and 104 fixed units whose daily office forms are maintained.
FREE WORK: it consists of a clockwise circular flow line located in the centre and used for meeting the demands of different departments, as well as carrying other auxiliary spaces, including various multi-functional spaces for reception, short meetings, discussion, and exhibition planning, meal and so on.
NO WORK: it is based on the veranda created for dynamic sunlight shading, which is covered by two runways. They play the parts of leisure and exercise for employees during off-work hours.
02 Central Plaza for office
When you enter the elevator hall, you are seemingly within the city’s central square. Then, the symmetrical street lights will lead people to the city centre along the axis. The inspiration for creating the wall surface comes from the Taotao bags of the group. There are symmetrical and round shapes. The folded seams with hardware hidden inside can eliminate the human traces to the greatest extent. These bag elements are made into the urban texture in the square by, say architects.
Moreover, the cut parts of the walls are equally folded by the internal corners. At the same time, they are polished well by the external corners. Nearly all the design logic on-site manifests in brand bag manufacturing.
03 Being the home furniture, as well as artistic sculpture
There is the first node of a square for FREE WORK by the right side of the door, and it is the space for breaks enclosed by two parent-child screens. When functioning as the space for guest reception, it also functions as a small discussion area. At night, it is considered public art in a diffuse reflection environment in the square centre.
04 The free and flexible office region
The first area reached is the FREE WORK area for the marketing and E-commerce departments. The continuous partition walls provide a relatively private space for group decision-making discussions or conference calls while creating a calm and peaceful spatial atmosphere for the promenade stretching into the office.
The area between FREE WORK and BASIC WORK consists of several glass boxes with translucent partition glass to ensure good light and create a stable private space.
Efficiency is an implicitly crucial factor for companies. Transparent decision-making and information circulation invariably increase corporate rotation efficiency. All solid wall surfaces in the BASIC WORK area are covered by felt panels, which help to provide a visual solution for the circulation of information in all departments.
05 Social opportunities within the square
The design department’s boardroom is located at the heart of the square. The unique nature of the department makes it a townhouse along the street with a separate access control system, but the huge curved glass windows show the creativity and handicrafts to the audience in the square. Distinguished from the traditional square tables and panels, the wavy tables and panels at the entrance are like amenities in a park, creating space not only for design workshops but also a vibrant way to socialize in the WARM STUDIO community.
06 Walk into the home in the design department
The design department will have more customized display cabinets and storage space than other departments. Behind the designers’ units are many hidden display cabinets with felt-covered doors, flexibly adapted to the discussion needs of different groups.
Say Architects keep each concrete pillar in the space and encourage everybody to create them according to the character and habits of their respective departments. The picture shows the “rainbow pillar” made by the design department from the leftover leather material.
Say Architect specially customizes the modular display cabinets at the entrance of the design department based on the design department’s habit of leather, hardware and books usage. They are made of solid and durable multi-layers and metal, providing users with more abundant storage space.
07 The flexible ARTWAY
The north side of FREEWORK is the ARTWAY space served by rotatable track lights, a simulated skylight structure and a diffuse lighting system. Besides that, the brand display, RUNWAY, WORKSHOP and even dinner parties will be held in this flexible space, which has become the offline space for the brand’s cultural output to a large extent.
08 Human-oriented lighting design
The lighting system in the site is designed by YAANK lighting design. Based on the environment of the natural square, the lighting design considers employees’ requirements from three aspects: natural light, human-oriented lighting and sustainable lighting to shape a functional, comfortable and artistic lighting environment.
The wall lamps are similar to the street lamps in the square, which can automatically light up at night with a 3000K warm light effect, providing the space with the illumination degree through the diffuse reflection of the ceiling and walls.
The inner ring lighting system mimics the sky light placed on one side of the curtain wall, making the light appear coming from outside the window. Even when someone looks up and sees the fixture, there is still a feeling of a skylight seemingly. This deceptive sensory experience plays a vital role in human mood and health from visual and mental needs, indirectly enhancing productivity and creativity.
The light ring around FRRE WORK not only simulates the lighting environment of sunlight but also creates the feeling that the intention is derived as an energy ring being charged; just like the sun rising in the east and setting in the west with an energy source coming endlessly. Echoing the change of colour temperature in a day, the colour temperature and illumination are changing every one hour. It is expected that the visual effect of lighting can tell every employee that the company’s development is closely related to each employee, so everyone is the contributor of the energy.
09 Everyone is an artist in the city
The grey space outside the office is the NO WORK region, consisting of a plastic running track and two hard paved surfaces connecting the office’s various entrances and exits on one side and a landscaped roof deck on the other. NO WORK provides users with excellent views and a place for aerobic activities.
The mountainous city images in the Baiyun district are framed into paintings by the constructional curves with super tension through the glass curtain walls. Each one is going through repeatedly in the paintings, so they are not only the audience of these paintings but also the creators of these paintings, as well as the participants in the city undergoing rapid changes day and night. The outer corridor’s light and shadow tell the city’s past and future and link the city and nature simultaneously, which can significantly relieve the working pressure on people.
10 Sense of happiness easily obtained
From the perspective of enterprises, it is conducive to its long-term development if there is a stable staff structure and efficient office state lasting for the long term. However, their basic logic highlights enhancing a sense of happiness for space users. G-loop aims to create a sustainable and happy office space by exploring the office environment in cities based on sharing, circulation and nature.
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