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Welcome to the March issue, a month when green shoots should literally be visible in parks, gardens and other bits of landscaping. Also the year feels settled in by now and business can really commence. It is also the time when the architecture community decamps to Cannes for the MIPIM event, to ensure they are in with a chance of winning new business and remind their clients and peers they exist. And if there happens to be a bit of topping up of vitamin D while one is at it, then that’s all to the good. Check out our MIPIM preview on p93.
Our cover star this time around is Eric Parry and it’s a wonder he hasn’t graced the front of OnOffice before now, due to his longevity in the business of architecture and with a such a wealth of office projects under his belt. He is the perfect choice for this, our surfaces issue, as his passion for all kinds of materials is emphatic. Parry has worked extensively with ceramics, giving the historic One Eagle Place in London’s St James’s a colourful facade using polychromatic glazes. His future projects, such as 10 Fenchurch Avenue and 1 Undershaft, promise to reshape the way London’s Square Mile is perceived, making it a more publicly accessible seven-day-a-week destination, rather than the exclusive domain of those who occupy the office buildings in its postcodes. Read our full interview with this charismatic architect on p38.
I’m thrilled that Catherine Slessor, former editor of the Architectural Review and esteemed journalist and critic has joined our raft of contributors with an OnSite on p62. It’s always fascinating to see what architects do with their own spaces and how they manage being both client and, er, architect. In the case of Paul McAneary Architects, it entailed working with a difficult space down an alley near St Giles Circus where centuries of history compete with new development. Look out for the cover approach to combating graffiti.
From Catherine Slessor to our co-working columnist Clare Dowdy to, well, yours truly, we like to think OnOffice is a place where strong female voices shine through. In keeping with this, the OnSite project (p46) featuring De Beauvoir Block, a multi-occupancy office project in east London is the work of Tatjana von Stein and Gayle Noonan – a duo who only set up Sella Concept relatively recently and already are busy making inroads in the world of workplace, with many other branding and commercial interiors projects on their books.
March is also when Women’s Week takes place and our regular columnist Katrina Larkin explores the idea of women’s only working environment and more in her OnCulture page on p28. It was talking to Katrina while she was at her day job, as co-founder and head of experience at Fora, that the idea to collaborate on an event to celebrate Women’s Week took shape. See details below in Special Moment and we’ll see you there.
Till next time
INSIDE THE ISSUE
OnGoing
From the editor We skip into spring with our budding surfaces special
News Steelcase launches a new cuvy SILQ polymer chair
Grant Gibson on… The luxurious woven bayleaf desk by Sebastian Cox
On London Peter Murray revives the pragmatic city of London
On Topic ACME’s Friedrich Ludevig on the language of surfaces
On Culture Katrina Larkin questions the niche for women’s spaces
Formula EC1 Anticipated updates from the 2018 addition of CDW
Made in China The top workplace brands at this year’s Design Shanghai
Material World Gearing up for UKCW’s Surface & Materials event
South Africa Express New collaborations from this year’s Design Joburg
Practice Playlist Kickstart the spring clean with Barr Gazetas’ mixtape
Cover Story Eric Parry
OnSite
Rocking Block De Beauvoir Block’s new co-working community
Making Mobile Mode:lina designs a vibrant and dynamic workspace
Flitcroft Street The Paul McAneary Architects’ office with a past
RegiOn
Notts Bounty The East Midlands city on the up with new office space
OnTop
A Perfect Wedding The Old Marylebone Town Hall settles for an upgrade
OnStage
Surface Special Three key sustainable trends shaping the industry
On the Double Why stupidy in the workplace is a good thing
On Co-working Mortimer House is inspired by human motivation
OnOff
Crate Expectations Loughton’s new community-driven working location
MIPIM Preview Exhibition director Ronan Vaspart on what’s to come
Book Review BDG’s Andy Swann delves into the future of the office
