The team at Hunt Architects have settled into their new home; an adapted office space in the State heritage listed Commonwealth Bank Building in the hub of the city. The iconic 1930's building offers an enormous footprint and an exciting new opportunity for Hunt Architects, who have called the predictable surrounds of West Perth home for over 50 years.
This new move to Commonwealth Bank Building brings Hunt Architects right into the heart of the city at Forrest Place, a hub of business, retail and tourism. The stunning art-deco building has been vacant for close to ten years, and was in need of new vision, passion and tenancy. Hunt Architects Director and Managing Principal Mark Young says the move from amore corporate space in West Perth to a studio space in the busy city centre was representative of the firms new era, and a sign of things to come.
"It’s a bold move that not only celebrates architectural stories of the past, but it also symbolises our evolution into an expanding, contemporary design practice nurturing young, up-and-coming talent." - Director and Managing Principal Mark Young
Young quickly realised the opportunity to create a shared foyer space that would provide an equal address for the 2 tenancies on the third floor; something that had not been capitalised on by the other floor fit-outs. The new foyer space features a seating area, shared between the clients of Hunt Architects and their future neighbouring tenancy. A suspended ceiling was installed to provide much-needed acoustic buffering in the cavernous space, whilst also creating a sense of closeness and comfort for those entering the premises.
A reception space is created through the use of sheer curtains, which create spatial definition but allow for visibility through to the rest of the space. Wrapping around the exterior wall, these sheers deliberately dim the space, whilst still allowing natural sunlight and ventilation to penetrate the office. Architectural models and displays are featured on a floating counter, with feature lights echoing the vertical column volutes in the space behind.
Desks line the perimeters of the floorplan, maximising access to light and ventilation, without impinging on circulation space, which is carved centrally throughout the floorplan and offers glimpses out to other iconic structures that line Forrest Place. Meeting rooms are arranged centrally on the floorplate in order to maximise the capability of the acoustic buffering features in the office.
The honouring of the buildings heritage features was integral to Hunt Architects tenancy and spatial layout, with the structures art-deco features highlighted and integrated alongside new design elements. Meeting spaces have been designed to read as glass boxes, which fit delicately between the existing columns, with lighting utilised to enhance these columns and capitals. The original jarrah parquetry floor remains, providing a rich dose of character and tactility in open space areas, with deliberate use of neutral materials and colours throughout to allow the timber flooring to be the star. A conscious decision was made to leave the flooring in it's original condition, and only refinish the areas that were added during renovations, in order to clearly draw a delineation between the original and new aspects.
One of the standout features of the new space is the monochromatic office spaces, which are inspired by the vibrant hues of Perths natural landscapes. Working closely with linguists of the Noongar Boodjar Language Cultural Aboriginal Corporation, Hunt Architects worked to have this concept translated into the correct Noongar words and grammatical form. In order to honour and show respect to the traditional custodians of this land, Hunt Architects have named their meeting spaces Boodjar (Country), Bilya (River) and Marlak (Bush), with the smaller, focus room being called Bidi (Path). This also encourages the use and awareness of Noongar language in everyday conversations, for both employees and clients who visit the space.
Mark Young sees this move of the Perth studio as a reflection of Hunt Architects evolution over the years, and it's trajectory for the future in a new vibrant, person-centred urban backdrop.
“Our vision for Hunt is that it will become an incubator for young, exciting design talent, with contemporary thinking and innovation blending with the design excellence and experience of the senior team." - Director and Managing Principal Mark Young
This new office space marks an exciting new chapter in the Hunt Architects story, as they continue to create contemporary, effective and inspirational buildings across Australia.
To read more about the exciting work of Hunt Architects and what is to come for their studio in the future, head over to their CO-architecture business profile. There you can explore their work further including Piara Waters Library and Red Earth Arts Precinct.
PROJECT DETAILS
Location: Perth, WA
Interiors: Hunt Architects
Size: 440sqm
Photographer: Dion Robeson
Builder: West to West Group
Engineer: Plexus Engineers
