Description
and Philosophy |
| The
VCH Executive Offices are to be built in a five thousand
square foot space within the new Children’s Hospital
Building now just entering the substantial completion stage.
Jim Shmerling,
the CEO, selected the location so that the Offices can be
accessible to staff and customers. For this reason, the Office
is to be located just off the Cafeteria dining area. Jim
also wanted a much greater level of interactivity among
his staff - among themselves, othe hospital staff and their
customers - than pervious environments facilitated. These
principles of
accessibility,
location
and
interaction determined
many aspects of the subsequent design. |
| The
original proposed layout was a conventional design of offices
ringed around and inside a doughnut shaped hallway. The principle
defects of this approach are: |
 |
There
is no significant ENTRY into the space.
The
Hallway provides no function or ambiance
other than basic circulation.
Exterior
light cannot travel through the space.
Interaction
is not encouraged among the residents
of the space nor between the Office
itself and other environments. |
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The
new plan is based on a collaborative
work process both
formal
and spontaneous and “signals” interaction
and inclusiveness and facilitates these
interactions.
It
clusters residents in ways related
to their work and provides greater
support for the many work modalities
intrinsic to the modern workplace. |
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| Both
in symbolic language and in practical facility, these two
approaches are different paradigms of what work, the workplace
and human interaction should be. These are not issues of
stylistic difference. They express an entirely different
grammar [link] and
Pattern Language [link].
They are based on a different view of humanity and human
potential. Architecture is the built expression of philosophy
and it
becomes the structure in which we live and work. We react
to these structures in a thousand ways. The original layout
is the expression of territory and division. It is
composed of rigid forms that had to be forced into the footprint
making awkward places and transitions. There is little
opportunity for a sense of place, for spaces of different
character and nuance. It is machine like with a one-size-fits-all
mentality. What message [link] does
this approach to the workplace send people? When asked, this
is not the kind of space Jim and his staff said that they
wanted and their reasons are worth reading [link
to survey]. |
| Two
Aspects of the Design |
| There
are two major aspects of this design: the work to be done
to the building itself (“leasehold improvements”)
and the WorkFurniture system that goes
into this container. The principle modification to the existing
architecture is the long wall [left
hand side of drawings] between
the Executive Office and the Cafeteria areas. While maintaining
distinction and privacy, this wall - in Plan version #5 -
creates a permeable membrane on several levels: shape, visual
transparency and translucency, materials and idiom. This
membrane must also act as the interface [link:
definition] between
the larger environment of the Hospital and the executive
offices. [link for
a discussion of architectural membranes] |
| The
shape breaks the line between the two areas. It
“gives and takes” between the two spaces. It establishes
awareness of activities within both spaces without losing
necessary difference and privacy. It is graceful. It establishes
the conditions for entry [link:
Pattern Language] and
exit. It reveals a wall of thickness and substance. |
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The
curved portion of the wall is made up of glass block, sheetrock, tile and operable
windows (translucent and transparent).
The
Armature system used throughout
the Offices projects into the
food quart space. A trellis piece
defines the main Entry. The
Radiant Room is directly behind
the curved wall and easily reached
through the secondary Entry.
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| The
entire wall will have to be carefully crafted to integrate
with the design of the larger space in which the Executive
offices fit. Some of the aspects of this are outlined elsewhere
[link].
The main Entry to the Executive Offices sets back into the
space, in a area of extensive landscaping - this “pulls”
the visitor into the Office. The Entry can be seen from
two locations: the Reception Desk and Office #4. Pod
#5-Office #4 interface with each other and are located close
to collaborative activities. The Radian Room WorkWall located
below the Trellis swing to accommodate larger groups (up
to 40) when required. All of these components function as
a
unit and make up capabilities most often lacking in the
typical executive office suite. |
[more notes will be posted by June 1] |
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| The
palette of this project is basically light, wood and work
surfaces of various materials. Light in various forms: outside
light passing through the workspaces; mechanical light from
a variety of fixture types providing user controllable ambient,
background, highlighting, spot lighting and task lighting
functions;
light filtered by trellises, screens and plants. Moving clear,
translucent and opaque screens will be part of the Pod and
CubeOffice systems contributing to a landscape of variegated
light. A mixture of light (basic) and dark woods (trim and
highlight)
will
be used for WorkWalls, WorkFurniture and certain wall surfaces.
Work surfaces of various kinds: vertical, horizontal,
fixed and moving to be used for display, computer work, writing,
storage, collaborative sharing and work and the organization
of work products. These surfaces will be made up of steel
with porcelain finish, formica,
wood
and
sticky
covered paper/magnetic tiles. |
[more
notes will be posted by June 1] |
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