The interior design of the two offices, Cumins- a real estate company and Abraham and Thomas Engineers Pvt. Ltd. – a construction company in the same premise run by 2 generations of the family, is an assemblage of patterns and colour in a very tight space. The constraint of space had us think primarily in making the place look spacious and vibrant while clearly demarcating the private and public zone.
Project Name: Cumins Estates and Abraham & Thomas engineers pvt. Ltd.
Studio Name: BetweenSpaces
Status: Built
Execution Team – D.M Interior
Photograph credits – Harsh Sharma
A small waiting/reception area was carved out near the lift and staircase lobby and physically separated from the main workspace using MS fabricated partitions and glass. The MS partition rendered in contrasting colours of black and yellow is highlighted against the white work desks and more nuanced background.
The interior elements are richly textured and a balanced mix of vibrant colours exhibited by cement tiles, coloured cushions, the neutral tone of terrazzo on the reception desk, granite flooring and cement boards used in the ceiling. The false ceiling is composed of dark walnut veneer strips over ply and contained within a much lighter cement board bulkhead. Bespoke light fitting integrated with fans allows light to spread playfully under the veneered ceiling.
Materials used – MS, glass and walnut veneer (partitions); hot rolled sheet, bison board panel, Terrazzo; ply finished in dark walnut veneer, cement boards (ceiling); granite, Cement tiles(flooring)
Speciality of the project – There is a very subtle change in the materiality of the two offices. A&T, being a construction company and run by the father has a more sober palette of materials like hot rolled sheet on reception desk, walnut veneer on the partitions and granite flooring.
Whereas, Cumins being run by the younger generation is peppered with pops of colour juxtaposed with the neutral colours of terrazzo and cement. A conglomeration of patterns of colour and materials to enhance the experience, both these office spaces were designed to infuse vibrancy to everyday work life.
The patterns in the cement tile flooring has been continues on to the terrazzo finish reception desk and the bison board panel behind the desk, thereby bringing a certain amount of visual coherency and playfulness. This multitude of colours, patterns and the material palette reflect the sensibility and ethos of our practice.
Divya Ethirajan
Partner
Divya Ethirajan is the Founding Partner and Principal Architect. She graduated from R.V. College of Engineering, Bangalore. Her Architectural Thesis on Rejuvenation of Russell Market, Bangalore, won all India best thesis award in 2007 at National Institute of Advanced Studies in Architecture (NIASA). Divya has interned with Arya Architects in Ahmedabad and continued working there post her graduation and thereafter with Hundredhands from 2006 to 2010. During this time, she got to work on residential, commercial, hospitality and several award-winning competition projects. In 2010, she teamed up with Pramod Jaiswal to start BetweenSpaces. Her keen sense of punctuality, simplicity and immense patience has been instrumental in developing the ethos of the practice. You will always find her smiling but don’t get deceived by her silence or her smiles because she is listening to every word you speak, processing it and working on the design solution. She is a multi-tasker.
Pramod Jaiswal
Partner
Pramod Jaiswal is the Founding Partner and Principal Architect. Pramod graduated from Bangalore Institute of Technology, Bangalore. He trained under V.K. Giridhar and worked with Hundred hands from 2005 to 2011. At Hundredhands, he has worked on some of the award-winning projects and competition projects.
Pramod always sensed a huge void of a good teacher back in his academic life and hence started going to architecture colleges since 2010. He has been going as a visiting faculty to BMS College of Engineering, Bangalore and Dayanand Sagar College of Engineering, Bangalore, to share his treasure trove of knowledge which he has gathered while working on different kinds of projects in last 12 years of his professional life. He is always ready to share his knowledge should one approach, otherwise there is always Jazz, Hip- Hop and Hard Rock. He respects complexities and detests complications. With a keen sense of detailing, he is always exploring for an idiom that makes Architecture expressive, meaningful, and sensitive to its context.
