Flashback Friday: Holland-Mark, 1995

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We’re flashing back to 1995 when we converted the office building of advertising firm Holland-Mark from an outdated early 20th century structure, into a visually striking and modern working space. The company has since changed locations, but many of our design features are still standing today.

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The renovation opened up the entire space, starting with the entryway which was cleverly drawn into the building, visible from the street through a large glass office front.

The mod orange staircase was added to visually entice the common passerby, but we maintained office safety by hiding the elevator port behind a wall of magnificent staggered glass panels. As you can see, the lobby is extremely contemporary and we are proud to say that the design is still in use today.

hmei receptionThe reception area was relocated to the second floor, at the end of a custom-made heavily textured curving wall that naturally lead clients in from the elevator doors.

hmei lightingWe installed a curving lighting scheme that worked to heighten and open up the work station area. The brightly lit ceiling clouds also helped us to conceal the building’s maintenance features. This lighting system is also extremely contemporary and still used today.

However, the retro features are definitely a token of the time period, as brightly colored fabric inspired by artist Joan Miró was very popular during the time.

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We’ll leave you with a final flashback shot–can you believe computer monitors used to be that large? While this project is definitely a throwback, it is also interesting to see that some of our designs still are in tact, like the lobby and ceiling clouds, even though we completed this facility nearly 20 years ago.

If you missed last week’s VC Flashback Friday, you can take a look at the year 2000 here.

Thanks for flashing back with us, and stay tuned for next week’s FBF!

Written by Isobelle Hemmers
Edited by Bob Caulfield, Senior Principal and Partner at Visnick & Caulfield
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