Frame, 2016

An angular aesthetic and balance between cold and warm materials are applied by Alper Derinbogaz of Salon to chart the brand values of a legal firm.

LOCATION ISTANBUL, TURKEY
TYPE LAW FIRM
FLOOR AREA 250 M²
ACCOMMODATES 10 EMPLOYEES
COMPLETION 2013
CLIENT CAFER TEKIF LAW OFFICE
PHOTOS BUSRA YELTEKIN
DESIGNER SALON

The original floor plan of the building that houses the CTHB Law office in Istanbul, Turkey is based on a simple grid. This formulaic thinking was adopted by Alper Derinbogaz of Salon and turned on its head – transforming the repetitive space into a dynamic environment that exploits the ‘tension between the linear and non-linear. Lines dart across the walls, floors, and ceiling to create irregular shapes and shadows throughout the office. For example, the reception area features an angled desk that blends smoothly into a triangular motif on the wall behind, which itself continues further down the corridor.

All the furniture and lighting share this angular theme. As befits a legal firm, the offices are more conventional than the quirky corridors, yet even here the laminated walls have been tilted at an angle to conform to the design pattern. A streak of lighting (or should that be lightning) runs the length of the corridor to guide visitors between service spaces, meeting rooms and offices that are organized hierarchically in terms of their function.

The largely monochromatic color scheme is given a touch of warmth with the use of dark wooden surfaces throughout. This contrast between warm and cold materials. as well as the tension between the traditional building and creative design intervention, encapsulate the values of the legal firm, veering as it does between the cold hard facts of the law, and its friendly, open nature.