Welcome to our new studio

Posted on

August 29th 2013

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After 9 years at the Hardware Lane address, our Melbourne studio has moved to a new premises. Just around the corner in Lonsdale Street, we have the fifth floor of a 1950s office building. The space was previously occupied by a law firm who had been there forever. Our aspirations for the space could not have been more different to what was there before. We sought open plan working whereas previously the space was heavily partitioned.

I knew this was the space for us the moment I set foot inside. It has the most fantastic windows from knee height to ceiling across the entire width of the north and south facades. As well, in the centre, there is a light well which provides glimpses of the sky above.

We engaged Edwards Moore to design the fit out. We have always wanted to work with them and figured what better way to achieve that than hiring them? In the interview, their director Juliet Moore said that we should expect to be challenged and even scared a little. Bring it on we said.

Their concept was that the daylight and views should not be owned by certain individuals; rather there should be egalitarian access to both. The design is orientated around the central communal kitchen and light well and this is seen as the ‘heart’ of the design, the hub of the studio. The floor is Rebound Ace (yes, as used in the Australian Open) and it feels a little soft to the foot and is perfect for our weekly yoga sessions. Line markings on the floor reinforce the planning and organisation of the setout – the lines radiate from the central hub.

And the lighting? The pressure was on here to come up with something that works really well and I think we have. At Electrolight we are all about integrating light into architectural finishes. To that end we have lights built into our joinery to uplight the ceiling and have other lighting concealed to illuminate the back wall. This is normally white but also has a ‘party mode’ where it can be dialed up to a custom colour (currently programmed to be pink to match the floor).

We look forward to welcoming friends and guests over the coming months and showing off our new space.

We are grateful to Edwards Moore who did an excellent job.