DesignOffice Studio

Collingwood’s workers’ cottages and graffiti-covered warehouses – many of which have been adapted into coveted spaces for domestic and commercial use – are markers of its blue-collar origins and industrial past. Tucked behind Smith Street in one such heritage building is DesignOffice’s new home: a split-level inner-city creative studio for a small team of architects and designers.

The existing early 20th-century warehouse, which was extended in 1995 to introduce a second level and a rooftop terrace, presented the architects with a fabric of varying condition. Though the mass and generosity of the red-brick lower level provided solid foundations and appealing heritage character and significance (it’s believed to have been connected to the original Coles supermarket on Smith Street), the upper level was lightweight with modest proportions.

Addressing the two levels in tandem and bringing continuity to the form guided DesignOffice’s response to the space.

Addressing the two levels in tandem and bringing continuity to the form guided DesignOffice’s response to the space. “Considered editing of the existing fabric, manipulation of volume and light and the subtle but deliberate use of tone and hue work together, unifying the upper and lower levels into a suite of connected spaces that support our team,” says DesignOffice creative director Mark Simpson.

With cost efficiency front of mind, the scope of work involved stripping back the form to its bare bones, in turn exposing the brick walls, structural frame and timber floors. On the ground floor, a new steel staircase anchored by a timber podium is a sculptural centrepiece, and the furniture selection and layout take distinctly domestic cues, imbuing the space with a certain casual air fitting for both the locale and DesignOffice’s team culture. “It’s a light-filled, generous, spatially playful and calm environment for work and creativity,” explains Simpson.

“It’s a light-filled, generous, spatially playful and calm environment for work and creativity.”

A palette of oiled cork, white oak, linoleum and painted steel is elemental yet inviting, and exposed timber rafters overhead bridge old and new. The original loading doors have been retained and remodelled; however, a fixed pane of glass has been added to the opening, allowing for privacy and security without hindering access to natural light. This move also creates a welcome dialogue between the interior and the alleyway.

Upstairs is similarly bright and airy, thanks to new oak-framed windows and doors, which open onto the refurbished terrace via the kitchen and meeting room. Animated by greenery, it’s a place to eat lunch, take an informal meeting or socialise with colleagues when the day’s work is done. This valuable gesture not only enhances the team’s everyday experience of the workplace but embodies DesignOffice’s ethos of intuitive and meaningful design thinking.

Architecture and interior design by DesignOffice. Build by Wilderness Building Co. Landscape design by Pop Plant. Joinery by Inform Joinery.