Description

This design revolves around the adaptive reuse of a single-story 1920s brick building in downtown Austin. The owner, a film-production company, was on a tight budget and wanted to repurpose as much as possible while creating something uniquely “Austin” in character.

“While the live/work concept usually evokes images of home offices or backyard writing studios, Austin-based Specht Harpman Architects have inverted the idea with their design for the offices of Beast, a national media company.”
– Christine Chang Hanway, Remodelista

We embraced this spirit of frugality using repurposing, assemblage, and local sourcing strategies. Resawn siding from a demolished building is used as surfaces to give a rustic character to common areas. Locally sourced stock steel segments were used to fabricate space dividers and kitchen installations. Cement backer-board, a rough material often used as an underlayment for tile, was applied as a surface treatment. Cheap, off-the-shelf chandeliers were painted and installed for feature lighting. We reworked and installed many existing interior partitions and surfaces, saving money and exhibiting traces of the building’s colorful history.