An Ethereal Sculpture Sparks Creativity In This Innovative Office

2024 Best of Year Winner for Small Corporate Office

“Human Spaces. Everyday Extraordinary.” That is the mantra of Vancouver, Canada, real estate developer Serein Properties, which aims to be artist-led, ambitious, and collaborative, creating properties that inspire and nurture. Its 2,400-square-foot headquarters by Mckinley Studios encapsulates these principles. For example, Rain from a Cloudless Sky, a large light-responsive sculpture of frosted polycarbonate, hand-etched acrylic rods, and knitted polyethylene bale wrap by Shirley Wiebe, hangs in the heart of the office, encouraging employees to think outside the box. At the entry, a tinted mirror–encased door imparts a sense of drama as it leads to a swirling black-marble kitchen with more mirrored surfaces and views over downtown. Beyond, a curved form is another intriguing focal point of the L-shape plan: Half is a glass-walled meeting room and half a wood pod that hosts AV displays of Serein projects. Together these luxe, unique elements yield a memorable and immersive visitor experience, a key goal for the client, while also expressing the company’s ethos.

PROJECT TEAM: JENN MEHRER; MIKE ROGERS.

Serenity Prevails in This House Surrounded by Nature on Canada’s West Coast

Nestled among the trees, this home enticed a young, creative couple to move from New York City to North Vancouver, British Columbia, where they decided to put down roots and raise their two children. The family liked the original proportions of the property and decided to expand the footprint minimally. The mid-century structure, however, didn’t fit their vision so they called on Olson Kundig to reinvent it. 

The team of Erica Colpitts Interior Design took care of the interiors, which were inspired by the peaceful surrounding landscape and rural British aesthetic to echo the homeowners’ fascination with the style. 

“The pure challenge of this home completely appealed to me,” she confesses. “My task was to meld Olson Kundig’s overall design with an ever so slightly soft and romantic interior.” Mission accomplished.  

This Vancouver Island Home Blends Japanese and Scandinavian Influences

Taking cues from Canadian countryside houses built from bricks, this 10,000-square-foot, two-story home features a contemporary vibe that fits its location in coastal Victoria, British Columbia. Designer Andrea Rodman began envisioning the interiors of the space, including its six bedrooms and seven bathrooms, from day one of the three-year project, even before architect Scott Posno and the builder signed on.

Thanks to the T-shape layout, two open courtyards and different wings invite the young family who lives here to enjoy a lifestyle that offers space for entertaining and privacy. One of the biggest challenges for Rodman consisted of reconciling the homeowners’ tastes and design visions—one leaned toward a more classic aesthetic while the other favored a modern look. Both of them, however, dreamed of a cozy family home that would suit them for many years. 

“The idea was having separation to the rooms but still maintaining an open feel, capturing traditional details without overpowering while also keeping the house minimalistic and understated from the inside to the outside,” explains Rodman. To achieve this aesthetic, she went with a white palette accented by oak tones, natural stone, and rattan, enabling the interiors to feel airy and connected to the outside. “Through this home, we wanted to capture the sophistication of mixing Scandinavian and Japanese design styles to find that unique balance,” says Rodman. 

Sprawling and elegant, this minimal home features a timeless collection of furniture and lighting with pieces from design masters as well as Rodman’s new online boutique, Hem Interiors. In the main bedroom, the 1970s Etcetera lounge chair by Jan Ekselius is a statement piece. Curated with the help of art consultant Alexandra Schafer—founder of VELVENOIR based in Europe—artworks by David T. Alexander, Bobbie Burgers, Kristen Giorgi, Brooke Holm, and Sun Young Min, among others, also contribute to the sophisticated yet warm atmosphere.

Perkins&Will Takes Home a Best of Year Award for Nemesis Coffee in Vancouver, Canada

2021 Best of Year winner for Hospitality – Coffee Counter

Comprising 10 petals of CNC-cut laminated timber clad in cherry-hued composite-aluminum shingles, this pavilion, an existing structure by Perkins&Will, is round in plan. After leasing it, Nemesis Coffee contacted the firm to design the 2,000-square-foot interior. The space “always wanted to be a coffee house,” senior associate Rufina Wu suggests. But the fit-out required finesse. “With our strongly sculptural building, the inside had to reference the architecture—and complement it.” Hence the feature ceiling element in which fins of white fabric stretch from a central oculus out toward the perimeter. LED strips spill soft light through the diffusing textile vanes for an effect that’s organic and calming while also echoing the exterior petals. The muted materials palette—glass, stainless steel, pale woods—creates a warm environment even on the city’s grayest days. Faced with pandemic supply-chain hiccups, the firm relied on a hometown fabricator for the curved birch-plywood paneling and a circular high table, its center planted with a tree. A stainless-steel bar slices through the middle of the plan, dividing the seating from the kitchen and service areas. Above, a continuous glass divider modulates from clear (for display cases) to reflective (concealing restrooms). “It reveals exactly what should be revealed,” Wu says, “and hides the rest.”

Perkins&Will: Ryan Bragg; Yehia Madkour; Rufina Wu; Mira Yung; Fargol Moshiri; Joanne Wong; Mahdiar Ghaffarian

Perkins&Will Turns to Geometry for a Coffee Shop at Emily Carr University of Art + Design

It could have posed an interior quandary. A pavilion in the public square serving Emily Carr University of Art + Design complex in Vancouver, BC, all by Perkins&Will, is round in plan, the structure consisting of 10 petals of CNC-cut laminated timber clad in cherry-hued shingles (thus its nickname, Red Pavilion). But after Nemesis Coffee leased the site, its third in the city, all in creative hubs, and contacted Perkins&Will via an Instagram direct message, the unusual container’s 2,000-square-foot interiors began to take shape. The space had “always wanted to be a coffee house,” senior associate Rufina Wu begins. But the fit-out required finesse. “With our strongly sculptural building, the inside had to reference the architecture—and also complement it.”

The Perkins&Will interiors team acknowledged the unusual geometry with a feature element on the ceiling. Starting with a central oculus, fins of white fabric stretch outward toward the perimeter. LED strips spill warm illumination through the fins, which are made from a textile used for dif­fusing light on film sets. The effect is both “organic,” Wu notes, and calming and echoes the exterior petals.

Perkins&Will selected a muted palette for the materials, the architect continues, to create a vibe that is welcoming, especially on Vancouver’s frequent gray days. The choices of glass, stainless steel, and pale woods were also affected by pandemic supply-chain hiccups. The firm relied on a hometown fabricator for the curved birch-plywood paneling and a circular high table, its center containing a leafy green tree.

In between all the swooshes is a highly functional eatery. A stainless-steel bar slices through the middle of the plan, dividing the seating from the kitchen and service areas. Above, a continuous glass divider modulates from clear (for display cases) to reflective (concealing restrooms). “It reveals exactly what should be revealed,” Wu says, “and hides the rest.” For those wanting to be seen, the café opens onto an outdoor patio furnished with recycled-plastic chairs.

Add tag via side panel: shingles (facade)

article: stools (café)

Andreu World: chairs

best film service: custom ceiling fins

tata: pendant fixtures

lumentruss: linear ceiling fixtures

systemalux: linear pendant fixtures

crl: display hardware

Blu Dot: seating (patio)

rempel bros: concrete flooring

thinkl lighting studio: lighting consultant

cft engineering: code consultant

p&b engineering: structural engineer

integral group: mep

uppercase architectural millwork and design: woodwork

goldray glass: glasswork

tetherstone construction: general contractor