element 01 | setting
From the results of my questionnaire, majority prefer to stay at home and indulge in nature when they are stressed. Therefore, many spaces are designed with a more humanistic approach. This means creating environments where people can feel comfortable, whether it is an office with a domestic atmosphere or a hotel lobby that feels like someone’s living room (St Hill, C 2015). Home is where we dwell in comfort, where we take a break from work and where we engage in quality moments with one another.
Where do you go to relax? Why do you choose these places?
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The new Soundcloud Headquarters in Berlin, designed by KINZO Berlin, looks very much like a home than an office. The office eliminates the rigid workstations and opens up more communal spaces to encourage more engagement among staffs. Breakout areas are filled with comfortable seating, creating a living room setting. There are also private nap rooms for staffs to take a break from work. Besides the typical office chairs, the meeting room is equipped with booth and bench seating with cushions, making daily meetings more casual and relaxed.
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Blend in with Nature
Bompass & Parr has offered hot tropical yoga sessions in their British Museum of Food installation in London. The space is designed in the setting of a tropical jungle with hundred of butterflies inhabiting inside under luminous fuchsia light, 90% humidity and 25-degree heat (Bompas, S. and Parr, H. 2015). The trees and butterflies furnish the space with liveliness and rejuvenate our tired souls.
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Konos Design has created an urban farm in an office, where employees can grow and harvest their own food at work (Andrews, K. 2013). This provides a relaxing yet active work environment, and educates people on the importance of nature.
"It is important not to just think about how we can use our natural resources ......, but to actively engage with nature and create new groups of people who have deep interest and respect for the world we live in."
by Kono Designs, 2010
(Andrews, K. 2013)
Clutter-Free Space
A cluttered and messy space often leads to a stressful environment. Many offices are loaded with folders on desks, reminding the employees every minute about work and deadlines. Uncluttering your workspace allows us to be more clear-minded, and to focus on work without any distractions (Alkhas, H. 2016).
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