Photo of Aspect

© Christian Columbres

Photo of Aspect

© Cheryl McIntosh

Photo of Aspect

Photo of Aspect

Photo of Aspect

Photo of Aspect

 

Aspect

Visitors Welcome

This is the story of transformation from an under-utilized retail space to the new standard in Class-A office amenity space. Our Interior Design and Brand teams worked in tandem to provide hospitality-inspired interiors, signage, environmental graphics, wayfinding and interactive digital for the ground floor lobby, amenity lounge, conference center, fitness and bike storage area. An interactive art installation by German artist Patrik Huebner uses generative algorithms to react to sounds and motions happening within the bar space—capturing the energy and vision for a branded, modern amenity experience.

...
Portland, Oregon
  • 1 story
  • 12,156 sq. ft.
  • Completed in 2019
PROGRAM

Landlord

PROJECT CONTACT

Interiors: Michael Stueve

Brand: Sara Van Dyke

officemsc@ankrommoisan.com


Interior Story

From Start-up to Grown-up

Architecture Photo of Aspect

© Christian Columbres

Architecture Photo of Aspect

© Christian Columbres

Architecture Photo of Aspect

© Christian Columbres

Architecture Photo of Aspect

© Christian Columbres

Throughout the common spaces of this Class-A office tower, a unified language of gold-highlighted materials and graphic elements sparkle, representing the firing synapses of a thinking, creative mind. In the heart of the renovated creative space, jewel tones, brass, and black reflect the high-end hospitality of the new lounge and bar. The fitness center—before, a small room with 8’ ceilings, no windows, and no natural light—is now doubled in size, with a high ceiling and new high-end finishes. It now features a yoga room, free weights, a stretching area, an equipment area, and new locker rooms that feel like a spa. Today, Aspect has become Portland’s largest tenant amenity space: a fully integrated, sumptuous creative experience that supports the city’s growing—and growing-up—tech market.

...

Brand Story

Movement and Connection

Architecture Photo of Aspect

© Cheryl McIntosh

Architecture Photo of Aspect

© Christian Columbres

Architecture Photo of Aspect

© Christian Columbres

Architecture Photo of Aspect

© Christian Columbres

Integrating fully with our Interior Design colleagues, we reimagined Aspect’s experience through the concept of biological neural networks: the metaphor that defines this new creative mixed-use space. From the moment visitors enter this ground-level space, moving past the lenticular art installation near the doorway, our design expresses interconnectedness and movement. Gold and brass graphical highlights represent sparks: the literal electrical sparks that make up our thoughts. Intersecting lines represent connection. We took organic forms and pushed them further, melding them with the forms of digital technology into a circuit board concept. Our custom drawings, painting, and composite pieces express the depth, emotion, and richness of life as living as simultaneously independent, yet interconnected people. The design vocabulary in Aspect lets us tell these bigger brand narratives that ties each space together and encourage interaction, camaraderie, relaxation. Every design and branded element expresses movement: The outside art installation moves with the viewer. All the graphics and interior design sparkle in gold. Inspirational graphics complement the new lighting. The digital Cube at the center comes alive with sound. Speaking of, when SteelWave shared their original plan for a four-sided cube of 172” screens above the bar, we realized opportunities all around us for screen content. Whereas a video or image loop would’ve been simple, those inert ideas wouldn’t capture the essence of the space or fully take advantage of the large screen array. So we instead explored generative art that reacts to sound, adding an endlessly changing visual layer to the center of the room, and collaborated with designer Patrik Huebner to bring the Cube to life. Now, visitors to Aspect can let themselves be hypnotized by abstracted digital forms, dancing across these four screens and shifting as the sound rises and falls. At night, the Cube is visible from the sidewalk, expressing the warmth and movement of the bar inside. Bold yet intimate, flexible and high-tech yet designed for connections, Aspect’s lounge gives people what they can’t get in their tenant suites. It’s designed to be unforgettable.

...

Back