As a young, dynamic and forward-thinking design studio, our approach reflects the type of world we want to inhabit. With this in mind, we have distilled a series of principles, our ‘guiding lights’ so to speak which underline who we are, and what we do. Channelling these allows us to see each site as a series of interconnected yet un-interpreted opportunities and to creatively add value for clients, communities, and the planet.
Second Lives:
While our work inevitably looks to the future, our direction is guided by an eye on the past, valuing and learning from the work of those who have gone before us. At the outset of any project, we strive to establish what intrinsic value can be found in a place and how can it be reused?
With a focus on sustainable spaces, a key aspect of our process involves forming creative methods to repurpose and reimagine existing buildings, blending technology and modern methods of construction to bring second lives to spaces, and the materials of a past generation
With a focus on sustainable spaces, a key aspect of our process involves forming creative methods to repurpose and reimagine existing buildings, blending technology and modern methods of construction to bring second lives to spaces, and the materials of a past generation
Designed for Wellbeing:
Over the course of the past 200 years, workers have migrated from workplaces like fields and farms to factories and offices. Instead of basking in natural sunlight, many people today are spending the majority of their time basking in the glow of some kind of screen, which puts us out of sync with natural circadian rhythms.
The built environment has a key role to play in supporting a healthy body and mind and as such, our designs focus wellbeing through improvements to natural ventilation, thermal performance, air quality, acoustics through to the strategic placement of a window for better daylighting.
The built environment has a key role to play in supporting a healthy body and mind and as such, our designs focus wellbeing through improvements to natural ventilation, thermal performance, air quality, acoustics through to the strategic placement of a window for better daylighting.
Amplifying Ecology:
While buildings often stand in opposition to nature, replacing green with grey, we believe that as we amplify the density of development, so should we amplify the density of nature. Environmental principles have always been fundamental to our design process and are deeply embedded in the concept rather than a bolt on overlay.
All buildings need to encourage biodiversity, reduce the urban heat island effect, provide shade and cooling, improve air quality, soften the harshness of the cityscape, restore wildlife habitats, and re-connect people with nature to enable the careful balance required for urban living.
All buildings need to encourage biodiversity, reduce the urban heat island effect, provide shade and cooling, improve air quality, soften the harshness of the cityscape, restore wildlife habitats, and re-connect people with nature to enable the careful balance required for urban living.
Storytelling:
Storytelling is a fundamental human experience that unites people and drives stronger, deeper connections. The stories we are told by our loved ones as children stay with us for a lifetime. Before we fully understand what, a place is, we have to imagine what it could be.
Building a narrative helps us breathe life into a place before it has shape, form, colour or volume, putting down roots in the communities we work with and anchoring a positive vision of the future into imaginations.
Building a narrative helps us breathe life into a place before it has shape, form, colour or volume, putting down roots in the communities we work with and anchoring a positive vision of the future into imaginations.
Community Focussed Placemaking:
As both an overarching idea and a hands-on approach for improving where we each call home, public spaces, wider regions, cities or regions, placemaking inspires people to collectively reimagine and reinvent spaces as the heart of every community. We believe that active participation from all stakeholders in a project leads to a better place.
We pay attention to the myriad ways in which the physical, social, ecological, cultural, and even spiritual qualities of a place are intimately intertwined and drive for inclusive and diverse discourse to lead each of our projects.
We pay attention to the myriad ways in which the physical, social, ecological, cultural, and even spiritual qualities of a place are intimately intertwined and drive for inclusive and diverse discourse to lead each of our projects.
Embrace MMC & Virtual Technologies:
While we love to sketch, the world is evolving at a pace so fast that 2-dimensional information exchanges simply can’t handle the quantity of information required to deliver the challenging intricacies of large scale multi-faceted design challenges.
By embracing digital technologies, Building information Modelling (BIM) and through integrating virtual and augmented reality into our daily workflow, we can invite clients, stakeholders and community members to dive into fully immersive environments and explore every area and aspect of a project. We find this to be an immensely powerful tool, one that provides drives efficiency in quality management and effective decision making.
By embracing digital technologies, Building information Modelling (BIM) and through integrating virtual and augmented reality into our daily workflow, we can invite clients, stakeholders and community members to dive into fully immersive environments and explore every area and aspect of a project. We find this to be an immensely powerful tool, one that provides drives efficiency in quality management and effective decision making.
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