TREExOFFICE is the newest intervention in the popular movement of rethinking workspace design. The pop-up public office is the first undertaking of the Park Hack project headed up by social and enviromental renewal charity Groundwork London and Hackney Council.
With the goal of testing creative and sustainable prototypes that enrich public spaces, Park Hack has offered London’s East End an original co-working concept with TREExOFFICE.
Wrapped around a tree in Hackney Square, the transparent dome-like structure is intended to break the boundaries between nature and the internal office. It was engineered by award-winning consultants Price & Myers and constructed out of compressed paper, plastic and polycarbonate. Inside, the space is equipped with eight working stations that have access to Wi-Fi and power. Rory Harmer, co-founder of Tate Harmer, had this to say about the initiative:
Developing the Hoxton TREExOFFICE has been an amazing opportunity to create a new office concept, changing the way we work in the city. The design highlights the need to improve and utilise our urban green spaces in new and fun ways for everyone to enjoy.
For the next several months, the workspace units will be rented out to local businesses or freelancers via an online booking system, and on weekends they will be available to community groups for free. All income generated from the hiring of the space will go into the regeneration of Hackney’s parks and green spaces.
TREExOFFICE, featured this month at the London Festival of Architecture, was designed as a collaborative effort by Australian-born engineer and artist Natalie Jeremijenko, installation art experts Shuster + Moseley, briefing architects Gensler and architecture firm Tate Harmer.