Designed
by
American architect
Sebastian
Quinn,
Tovin
Studios
is
the
new
headquarters
for
Tovin
Design,
an
independent
design
and
consulting
firm
specializing
in
home
furnishings.
Conceived
as
an
intervention,
Tovin
Studios
recycles
the
shell
of
a
former
warehouse,
which
was
carved
with
large
openings
in
the
roof
and
walls
to
fill
the
space
with
natural
light.
The
exterior
is
clad
in
weathering
steel,
referencing
the
site's
industrial
past
and
the
grittiness
of
the
surrounding
neighborhood.
The
banal
900 square metre (3000 square feet)
cinderblock
box
was
not
an
obvious
choice for the space.
But while
it
lacked
any
daylight,
it
did
offer
plentiful
space.
The
renovation,
including
all
new
systems,
roof,
and
landscape
was
achieved
for
a
modest
$100/sq.
foot.
The architect
employed
a
series
of
sustainable
strategies
to
reduce
the
building's
resource
consumption
and
improve
the
user
experience.
Large
window
penetrations
in
the
walls
and
roof
allow
the
staff
to
work
in
diffused
daylight,
typically
without
any
artificial
light.
The
light
monitors
on
the
roof
face
south
and
employ
operable
translucent
insulation,
to
act
as
direct
gain
solar
heaters. They
provide
a
third
of
the
building's
heat,
and
power
a
thermal
stack
summer
ventilation
system.
Sebastian Quinn: Tovin Studios
A former industrial warehouse shell is recycled by carving openings on the ceiling and walls, bathing this design office, workshop and gallery in daylight.
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- 28 March 2012
- Nyack