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IDEO London Studio
The project is an 8,600 sqft/ 800 sqm (approx), new studio for IDEO London. The space inhabits a rooftop extension to Herbal House, a refurbished printworks originally built in 1928 for the Daily Mirror, later occupied by Central St Martin’s and the London College of Printing. The design celebrates the industrial heritage of the original building, whilst introducing warmth with a material palette of timber, limestone, cork and felt throughout. These materials and textures grade a landscape of spaces to facilitate a spectrum of working modes, from intimate phone booths to meeting rooms, individual to group work stations, and an outdoor terrace boasting spectacular views across central London.
The immediate success of the project is how it conveys openness, creativity and community, three of IDEO’s core values, as well as capturing the company’s design spirit. The strategy has been to make the interior as open and fluid as possible so that all spaces benefit from clear sightlines and natural light, as well as an atmosphere of communality. The interior provides varying degrees of permeability with sheer curtains, three-quarter height divider walls and transparent partitions on enclosed meeting spaces. A new stair at the centre of the space connects the two levels and creates a lively hub around the coffee bar, which links to the kitchen above.
The design balances a loose-fit, future-enabled workspace which is flexible in answering the need for open plan workstations; project rooms of various team sizes; formal meeting spaces for client presentations; and informal break-out areas to provide breathing space – all within a unified and welcoming space.
