• Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

    Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

  • Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

    Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

  • Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

    Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

  • Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

    Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

  • Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

    Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

  • Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

    Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

  • Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

    Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

  • Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

    Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

  • Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

    Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

  • Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

    Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

  • Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

    Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

  • Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

    Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

  • Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

    Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

  • Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

    Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

  • Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

    Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

  • Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

    Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

  • Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

    Photo by Tim Griffith Architectural Photographer; courtesy WRNS Studio

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WRNS Studio renovation doubles century-old Okland Construction HQ

Using LEED, Living Building Challenge, and WELL, the studio worked with the Salt Lake City-based company to craft a healthy, inspirational workplace that connects employees with the natural environment

by Georgina Johnston 13 September 2021

Strategies focused on using healthy, regional materials, maximising daylighting and views, and creating a warm and engaging sense of place. Options were mocked up on-site to review quality and ensure resiliency against the local Utah climate. The building’s existing brick was paired back, allowing for the introduction of contemporary building materials like wood cladding and cast-in-place concrete.

The first floor Town Hall is clad in cast-in-place concrete, contrasting with the darker wood that wraps the second floor. A glass and louvre system on the existing second floor allows natural light to flow into executive suites and to bring levity to the building’s volume. The intensification of colour and materiality occurs in high traffic spaces. Cherry wood, utilised as exterior window mullions, reappears in the reception and lounge areas, contributing warmth to the organic palette. 

To maintain a visual connection to the lush natural surroundings, the new addition shelters a courtyard planted with regionally important red oak trees and lavender. A newly established atrium cuts through the existing building, instituting simplified connections between floors and allowing natural light to filter into subterranean rooms. Concrete and tongue-and-groove black panels create continuity throughout the interior. The new addition extends forward, like a ship’s bow, nearly doubling the workspace, while a new entrance reorients the building, better integrating the modern form into the site’s residential setting.

Woven throughout the interiors, the application of primary colours plays a key role in defining space. Red and blue are favoured in gathering spaces; woven red carpets create individual vignettes accented by blue upholstery, accent wall paint and wall coverings. Blue Heath Tile is also used to mark pantry spaces. The yellow of Okland Construction’s logo was repeated in the main circulation stair where concrete risers are enclosed in lacquered yellow steel, indicative of construction vehicles. 

WRNS Studio
United States

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