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Fahey
By : blanchette archi.design
GRANDS PRIX DU DESIGN – 16th edition
Discipline : Interior Design
Categories : Office / Office ≤ 5,400 sq.ft. (≤ 500 sq. m.) : Gold Certification
Perched atop the Royal Bank building, Fahey and associates’ new headquarters offers a workplace that is open to the city.blanchette drew on the practice of its clients, who specialize in urban planning, landscape architecture, and urban design, to develop a concept focused on urbanity. From the sketch, the design team wanted to clear the perimeter of the suite to democratize the panoramic view and access to natural light.
Parvis
This narrative begins at the entrance where a series of windows offer a glimpse of the western side of downtown. The reception area is revealed through different shades of gray and a composition of two monolithic volumes, one made of stainless steel sheets and the other of granite quarried from Saint-Henri-de-Taillon. The reception area, close to the conference room, plays the role of a forecourt welcoming visitors before they enter an institution. The materials chosen echo the urban furniture and minerality of these public places that we encounter on a daily basis, while the proportions and zenithal lighting evoke a certain monumentality.
Cœur d’îlot
The studio recaptures the experimental qualities of Montreal backyards. Shielded from the excitement of the noisier office areas, the studio provides a calming workplace, combining monochromatic and biophilic. The offices are positioned to provide a constant visual link to Old Montreal, the St. Lawrence River and the mountain ranges in the distance.
By their volumetry and materiality, the suite of closed offices and call booths approaches the idea of an alley, where we find shed doors and makeshift wooden constructions. The unusual appearance of a floral patterned carpet and oriented chip panels dyed with the company’s identifying color, both contribute to materialize the heterogeneous aspect of the cores.
Bookcases supported by aerial structures complete the scenarization of urbanity in reference to scaffolding. These pieces of furniture were designed by the blanchette team.
Urban interstice
The print and locker room explores the idea of the urban interstice, connecting the workshop and the kitchen.
In addition to marking a threshold, the application of a dark color and the lowering of the ceiling along a half-arch, in reference to the company’s logo, contributes to the intelligibility of the concept and offers contrasting experiences that modulate the space.
Park
Like many, the clients chose to reduce their rental space to reflect their new ways of working in a post-pandemic context. Following this premise, the integration of flexible spaces proved essential to providing a complete work environment.
The designers worked the kitchen space to resemble a park – an easily appropriated place to work, eat, relax, socialize and celebrate. The multi-zone layout allows for different uses throughout the day. It is equally possible to isolate yourself for a coffee break, gather on the couch for an informal meeting or move the furniture around to organize a 5@7. The integration of plants and the selection of tables and chairs reminiscent of urban furniture subtly complete the staging of a park.
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Collaboration
