Cardigan Office
Alex Lesage

Cardigan Office

Ivy Studio als Architecten

Cardigan is a young and dynamic Montreal based digital advertising agency founded in 2016. As their need for expansion grew fast, their team was looking for a new location that could accommodate their 25 employees. In 2020, they found this two-storey high stone building located in the heart of the Rosemont borough of Montreal. Originally built to be a bank in 1907, the building had many lives over the years and was most recently used as a religious establishment. Consisting of a 1250 square-foot open-space on the ground floor, the building holds an equal-sized basement underneath and an independent residential condominium above. With its unique history and architectural features, the space seemed like a great place for Cardigan’s new offices.

photo_credit Alex Lesage
Alex Lesage
photo_credit Alex Lesage
Alex Lesage

One of the main challenges of working with the building were the contrasting ceiling heights between each floor. Although the ground floor has a generous 16.5 feet of clearance, the basement is only 7 feet high and has no windows. This made the spacial blocking very important at the start of the project. To benefit from a maximum of natural light, all workstations are placed on the ground floor, with bathrooms, kitchen, lounge and storage in the basement.

Although the ground floor is very spacious and open, its footprint remains insufficient for 25 desks with meeting rooms. Thankfully, the vastly high ceiling allowed for a mezzanine to be added to a portion of the space. To avoid blocking the grand arched windows on the main façades, the mezzanine was placed in the opposing corner, near the existing closed staircase. This added space above is used for a handful of employees that need a more intimate working environment. The closed space underneath the mezzanine, on the other hand, is perfect for several meeting and call rooms that can be quickly accessed from the open space.

photo_credit Alex Lesage
Alex Lesage
photo_credit Alex Lesage
Alex Lesage

From the beginning, the ground floor featured beautiful architectural qualities in itself, so the intervention is meant to feel subtle. To begin, the entire floor was already spacious and bright, so it was entirely painted white. Existing moldings were kept intact to reflect the multiple stories the building has to tell. The newly-built mezzanine structure interprets the curves of the existing space without competing with them. Still fitting with its light environment, the mezzanine is covered with a perforated steel mesh. This delicate screen adds privacy, while still letting the natural light reach into the meeting rooms. Some of the glazed walls are recessed from the mesh to create an intermediate layer for planters. To let even more light in, the boarded window arches were reopened to their original form. Finally, the old parquet was replaced by a new natural oak finish, keeping the warm spirit of the existing floor.

photo_credit Alex Lesage
Alex Lesage
photo_credit Alex Lesage
Alex Lesage

With low ceilings and no exterior windows in the basement, recreating the bright and spacious atmosphere of the ground floor was nearly impossible. Instead, it is a different universe of its own. To contrast with the delicate and classic design above, the basement has a more futuristic “in your face” approach. None of the materials used on the ground floor are found here. A mix of plastered ceilings, ceramic walls and epoxy floors make for an intentionally more austere environment. Everything is artificial and nothing is white. Bright baby blue hues cover the main kitchen area with contrasting warm orange rooms on the periphery. A neutral matte grey palette serves for the sanitary block. The spaces are all monochromatic, to increase the visual impact of their intense colors but also help camouflage the imperfections of the existing building. Reflective materials such as stainless steel, high-gloss laminate and an abundance of mirrors help brighten up the compact space.

photo_credit Alex Lesage
Alex Lesage
photo_credit Alex Lesage
Alex Lesage

To join the two floors together, two very different staircases can be used. The first is a classical wooden staircase that seems to have been there for the past century. The second, more minimalistic and playful with its two curved ceiling arches, was added for this renovation. To unite the two styles, they are each painted a deep navy blue. In a way, the two staircases, like many other contradicting design features of the project, represent Cardigan very well: they are a company that values quality and hard work and has numerous high profile clients, all the while being a group of fun, down to earth individuals that love to have a good time.

photo_credit Alex Lesage
Alex Lesage
photo_credit Alex Lesage
Alex Lesage

Team:
Design + Architecture: Ivy Studio
Construction: Groupe Manovra
Photography: Alex Lesage

Caption
Caption
Caption
Producten Achter Projecten
Product Spotlight
Nieuws
Archello houses of the month - January 2025
6 feb. 2025 Nieuws
Archello huizen van de maand - januari 2025

Archello heeft zijn huizen van de maand voor januari 2025 geselecteerd. Deze lijst toont 20 van de m... Meer

Polish Embassy in Berlin by JEMS Architekci is a “testament to architectural diplomacy”
6 feb. 2025 Nieuws
Poolse ambassade in Berlijn door JEMS Architekci is een "testament voor architecturale diplomatie".

De nieuwe Poolse ambassade in Berlijn, een project waar dertien jaar aan is gewerkt, is officieel ge... Meer

Ika.architekti builds fun and functional DIY sauna in Brno
3 feb. 2025 Nieuws
Ika.architekti bouwt leuke en functionele doe-het-zelf sauna in Brno

Het in Brno gevestigde ika.architekti heeft een geüpcyclede sauna gebouwd met behulp van een re... Meer

HGAA expands restaurant in Bãi Cháy with a building that embraces nature
29 jan. 2025 Nieuws
HGAA breidt restaurant in Bãi Cháy uit met een gebouw dat de natuur omarmt

Het Vietnamese architectenbureau HGAA is opgenomen in Archello's lijst van de 25 beste architectenbu... Meer

Mole Architects elevates “mundane” 1960s English bungalow with new extension
29 jan. 2025 Nieuws
Mole Architects verheft "mondaine" Engelse bungalow uit 1960 met nieuwe uitbreiding

Mole Architects, een architectuurstudio uit Cambridge, heeft de upgrade en uitbreiding voltooid van... Meer

New Samuel Paty School in Béziers plays with materiality
22 jan. 2025 Nieuws
Nieuwe Samuel Paty-school in Béziers speelt met materialiteit

Het Parijse architectenbureau O-S (Vincent Baur, Guillaume Colboc en Gaël Le Nouëne) heeft... Meer