Marketel

1250 West René-Lévesque, Montreal

The "creativity" aspect of the agency is expressed in the vertical plane by having the corridor walls be curvilinear both in plan and elevation. There is a surprise around ever corner. Also as can be seen from the plan, no office has four parallel walls, everyone’s space is unique, their own.

The "rigor" is expressed in the floor. All the floor finishes follow the 5 foot by 5 foot grid of the building structure. The carpet also has subdivisions of 4"X4" throughout. This creates the feeling that everyone is interconnected in a very real way. If someone pulls on this "net" at one corner, it is felt by all. As the curving walls spring unexpectedly out of the floor, this grid maintains discipline and order. The ceiling also follows this rigid patter with small lights inserted at the intersection points of the grid, highlighting the squares that identify the floor grid.

In order to maximize the amount of light to the interior spaces, the door have glass inserts. However, to provide privacy and color, they are colored to look like stained glass reflecting the floor plan. We developed a new technique in collaboration with the glass supplier. A pattern of any color and shape can be applied to one pane and then laminated to another, sandwiching the design safely between the two panes, and giving a very finished, luminescent look.

Wherever possible, "non-toxic" and environmentally friendly materials were used to ensure the best quality environment possible. For example low VOC adhesives for the carpet and plastic laminates, low emission paints, flooring in the reception from recycled marble / granite chips and wood for the furniture from managed forest sources.

The furniture is also entirely custom-designed. It is conceived to be light, floating to allow the floor to flow through uninterrupted. The few legs that hold up the work surfaces are made of stock electrical conduit with a slight bend in them to respect the theme of creativity in the vertical plane.

Klein Thibodeau Henderson Architecture + Design was the architect, J.Robert Thibodeau was Principal in charge of production and construction administration.