"The Paris end of Collins Street in Melbourne is celebrated for its blend of historic charm and modern elegance, featuring iconic architecture and a vibrant mix of old and new Melbourne classics."
55 Collins Street in Melbourne is celebrated for its iconic blend of historic charm and modern elegance. Located within the renowned Collins Place, designed by I.M. Pei, this prestigious address offered an exciting opportunity for our new flagship workspace. To bring this vision to life, we partnered with DesignOffice, the architects behind our George Street and Surry Hills locations. Ahead of the opening, we spoke with DesignOffice founders Mark Simpson and Damien Mulvihill about their inspiration, creative process, and what members can expect from this new space.
Tell us about the vision for The Commons Collins Street.
The design approach for The Commons Collins Street aims to create a vibrant, connected and inspiring vertical community, at the Paris end of the CBD and in the heart of Collins Place. Arranged across 6 different levels, we have created a suite of convivial and functional spaces, intuitively connected and designed to support every part of the working day.
How did the surrounding area and its reputation influence the design?
Collins Place is a landmark within the city in a vibrant and busy location where trams, taxis and metro stations coalesce to bring people from all directions to both work and play. We wanted the communal spaces at The Commons to have a visible and tangible connection to the dynamism that exists at the street level, contributing to the urban grain of cafes, restaurants and bars.
"This prestigious location, home to the renowned Collins Place designed by I.M. Pei, presented an exciting opportunity for our new flagship workspace. The vision was to create a vibrant, connected, and inspiring vertical community that mirrors the dynamism of its surroundings. To bring this vision to life, The Commons has collaborated with DesignOffice, the architects behind our George Street and Surry Hills locations. Ahead of the opening, we spoke with DesignOffice founders Mark Simpson and Damien Mulvihill about their inspiration, creative process and what members can expect from this new flagship."
Did the surrounding architecture influence your choice of materials and colour schemes?
The Paris end of the city is known for iconic architecture and a vibrant mix of both old and new Melbourne classics; from Pelligrini’s to Cumulus Inc. We wanted the design approach to feel confidently timeless like the best of the surrounding buildings and venues; a part of the city fabric and Collins Place.
Did the fact that Collins Place was designed by IM Pei influence the design approach or integration of any architectural elements into The Commons Collins Street?
I.M. Pei’s Collins Place is one of our favourite buildings in Melbourne and the chance to work in harmony with this building to create a new flagship for The Commons was a huge privilege. We started our design process by exploring the architectural language and materials of the late 1970’s building to form a design foundation anchored in its place.. We drew on the confident geometry, punctuated with a language of graphic detailing and took inspiration from the playful and intuitive circulation routes throughout the ground plane.
Can you tell us about the colour palette and textures chosen?
The foundation of the material palette is drawn from the original building fabric. The double-height bar and library which overlooks The Great Space through huge picture windows, is anchored by the beautifully textured original granite that lines the core. It was critical to us that this material was retained and its tone and texture were the starting point for the overall palette. Timber parquetry adds tactile warmth and complements this; as well as brings a subtle nod to the richness and patina of the beautiful original timber end grain floor which used to line the ground plane of the building. This base of natural materials is extended with smoked oak and stainless steel, and layered with a composition of rich saturated hues through furniture, fabric and flooring.
How did you incorporate human-centred design into the interiors and architecture of the space?
Human- centred design is a core principle of what we do and it’s important that the spaces wedesign for The Commons respond to a wide range of needs and personalities. When working on the design we continually ask ourselves who would be using each individual space, what their needs might be, and how design can intuitively foster and support this. Different spaces, social interactions and workstyles have different needs depending on the individuals, their activities and the time of day. Accordingly, we work to create a diverse series of connected spaces offering environments that are both fast and slow, calm and activated, convivial and focused. We want every member to have their favourite spaces that support their needs, inspire them, and contribute to their daily lives.
How do you want people to feel when they’re in the space?
Comfortable, inspired and supported. We want to create spaces for The Commons’ members which make them feel at ease, uplifted, energised and intuitively supported by their environment.
What about this project are you most excited about?
The opportunity to reimagine key spaces in such an iconic building that we love is a very special one. We’re excited about this new chapter in the building’s history, adding to its legacy and crafting a space which responds to contemporary life. We’ll see you for a martini at the bar!
The Commons Collins Street is set to open in November 2024. Find more information here.
