New Open Office Space, San Francisco Bay Architecture, Mill Valley Building, Architect
New Open Office Space in Mill Valley
San Francisco Commercial Development, California, USA ? design by Studio VARA architects
Nov 10, 2016
New Open Office Space in Mill Valley
Design: Studio VARA, architects
Location: Mill Valley, San Francisco, United States
Studio VARA Adaptive Reuse Project Transforms Retail Building into New Open Office Space

This adaptive reuse project transforms the most banal of commercial box buildings into a light-filled courtyard office space specifically outfitted for a discerning, high-end residential builder with an exclusive clientele.

Architectural design for the building was driven by four main objectives: to embody the client?s enigmatic brand, to embrace the industrial aesthetic, to strategically introduce natural day-lighting through punctures in the envelope, and to execute the project efficiently via a well-detailed, judicious use of materials.
In response to the client?s desire for anonymity, the exterior presents a quietly ambiguous face to the nearby highway. A thin membrane of weathering corrugated steel wraps the exterior in understated boldness and is raised away from the dark stucco base to express its autonomy from the building.

Deep window apertures are punctured through this skin and articulated by steel shadow boxes offset by dark black metal panels.

The main entry is reoriented from the highway to the parking lot facade to underscore ...