In what seems like an effort to make commuting to work as hard as humanly possible, Chinese architecture firm O-office decided to build their new HQ way atop the oldest beer factory of Guangzhou, China. From the outside, the 1960s building still looks very much like its formerly industrial self, with twelve, 124-foot-high silos stemming up from the ground—all made from the same weather-beaten concrete. The sky-high interiors, on the other hand, look remarkably less factory-like, and more like some of the hippest and more, well, more grounded offices of the world—with an 131-foot-long stretch of open, airy work space outfitted with original brick walls, smooth concrete floors, and communal desks. In square floor cut-outs that once fed into the silos, the design team either installed wampee trees, or fit in a piece of glass, so that the dark insides of silo could still be visible. One last nod to the spaces boozy past? A dark wooden bar area, no doubt stocked with a decent beer selection. Find a few more shots below, then head over to Arch Daily for the full gallery.
· Silo-top Studio / O-OFFICE Architects [Arch Daily]
· All Office Spaces posts [Curbed National]