design et al are delighted to announce the successful shortlist for D&A for the Office Award in the ID&A Awards 2015.
This project consisted of interior architecture for the office floors of a new headquarters building for one of Oman’s leading banks. A building of classic Arabic design on the exterior has been given a stylish and contemporary interior, its seven floors accorded individual treatment and accented with the bank’s corporate colour of blue. The acoustic panels sit alongside the ceramic tiles and textured wooden flooring. Each floor is designated with a different pattern and colour to differentiate each department.
The reception areas are given personality with backdrops in distinctive designs, backlit to add ambience. Glazed panels surround open plan offices, encouraging natural light and allowing both privacy and transparency. Breakout areas are given unique identities with furniture specific to each space. Cityscape invokes the energy of fast-moving vehicle lights, with futuristic furniture sitting against bold accents of red and yellow. Parisian is an alluring area; chandeliers and metallic curtains adding glamour. In contrast, Zen is a calmer space, a tranquil escape accessorised with earthy tones and low level seating. Moroccan has ambience with its backlit feature wall and traditional wooden lights.
Maximizing natural light was key to the design of this office space. Enclosed office spaces are placed in the middle, while all workstations and open plan offices are placed on the periphery. This allows natural light to penetrate through the glazed panels and into the work areas.