Mies van der Rohe meets Mad Men at this London office
At One Canada Square in London, The Office Group has brought flexible work space, Peloton bikes, and terrazzo to the financial district

In Canary Wharf at the iconic One Canada Square building, designed by César Pelli in 1991, London based dMFK Architects has refurbished three floors of office space to a design inspired by the American corporate interiors of Philip Johnson and Mies van der Rohe.
The 80,000 sq ft office within the 50 storey building (London’s second tallest) was commissioned by The Office Group to fill a market gap for flexible work space in the traditional financial district – it can be adapted to fit businesses from four to 1000 people. Other assets for employees include dedicated recharge zones and informal break-out spaces, while the Peloton bike area in the fitness studio is another work perk.
There’s a clear nostalgia for the mid-century era across the design. The architects combined Kvadrat fabrics with linoleum-faced joinery to bring tactility to the shared spaces. Inspired by the original building foyer, a grand coloured marble and polished steel affair, the architects’ selected rich figured terrazzo, mid-toned sapele timber panelling and painted metalwork for the workspaces.
You won’t forget which floor you’re on either because each floorplate has a different sequence, and a dramatic staircase spirals through the floors. New linear avenues added by the architects connect views and bring light into the core, while a colour scheme of deep blue, soft pink, smoky green and terracotta.
INFORMATION
Harriet Thorpe is a writer, journalist and editor covering architecture, design and culture, with particular interest in sustainability, 20th-century architecture and community. After studying History of Art at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) and Journalism at City University in London, she developed her interest in architecture working at Wallpaper* magazine and today contributes to Wallpaper*, The World of Interiors and Icon magazine, amongst other titles. She is author of The Sustainable City (2022, Hoxton Mini Press), a book about sustainable architecture in London, and the Modern Cambridge Map (2023, Blue Crow Media), a map of 20th-century architecture in Cambridge, the city where she grew up.
-
Plaster master: Elizabeth Garouste creates a new free-flowing collection for Ralph Pucci
Ralph Pucci presents a new body of work by veteran designer Elizabeth Garouste, featuring mirrors and sconces made of plaster in Ralph Pucci's Manhattan sculpture studio
By Pei-Ru Keh • Published
-
Peek inside The Langham Venice as it takes shape on Murano island
We take a sneak peek into The Langham Venice by Matteo Thun & Partners set to open on Murano in 2024
By Ellie Stathaki • Published
-
Aston Martin DB12 makes its debut, offering new interiors and a muscular look
Aston Martin gets the fundamentals right. The DB12 may look like a gentle evolution of the DB11, but under the skin it’s a very different car, a ‘Super Tourer’ with classic style and high technology
By Jonathan Bell • Published
-
Don’t Move, Improve 2023: meet the House of the year and London’s best homes
The Don’t Move Improve 2023 winners have been revealed, chosen from a refined selection of 15 homes, as the judges announced the Home of the Year alongside seven more category gongs
By Ellie Stathaki • Published
-
A Mayfair coach house reborn through warmth and craftsmanship
A Mayfair coach house is transformed through colour and light by Studio QD and Holloway Li
By Ellie Stathaki • Published
-
2023 British Pavilion offers diverse and dynamic installation at the 2023 Venice Biennale
The 2023 British Pavilion, 'Dancing Before the Moon,' contributes a triumphant blend of ritual, music, and cross-cultural pollination to the biennale’s ‘laboratory of the future’
By Jonathan Bell • Published
-
Riverstone elevates retirement living through design
Riverstone launches its Fulham outpost in London, celebrating a blend of design, care and culture in retirement living
By Ellie Stathaki • Published
-
The finest brutalist architecture in London and beyond
For some of the world's finest brutalist architecture in London and beyond, scroll below. Can’t get enough of brutalism? Neither can we.
By Jonathan Bell • Published
-
Factory International by OMA is set to be a moveable feast
Factory International by OMA is a Manchester cultural centre designed to break barriers between audience and performer
By Ellie Stathaki • Published
-
St Catharine’s College social hub in Cambridge reimagined by Gort Scott
Gort Scott's design for St Catharine’s College, Cambridge, gives a sensitive facelift to a much loved, bustling campus
By Ellie Stathaki • Published
-
Eurovision 2023: stage design behind the scenes
The Eurovision 2023 stage design for the legendary annual song contest, held this week in Liverpool, has been designed by Yellow Studio and draws on the power of a hug
By Ellie Stathaki • Published