Malbon Office

Malbon Office is a minimalist space located in Los Angeles, California, designed by 22RE. Where modernist office planning once prioritized efficiency through rigid hierarchies and compartmentalization, this project embraces what we might call convivial functionality. The Douglas fir that frames the warehouse’s barrel-vaulted ceiling finds echo in the custom bench and lounge chairs, creating a material dialogue that spans decades. This is not pastiche but a genuine conversation between eras, one that acknowledges the enduring qualities of honest construction while embracing contemporary needs for flexibility and warmth.

22RE’s approach reveals a sophisticated understanding of how materials can carry cultural memory. The interplay of Douglas fir with stainless steel, aluminum, travertine, and walnut creates a tactile vocabulary that speaks to California’s unique position between industrial pragmatism and lifestyle innovation. Each surface tells a story: the warmth of wood tempering the coolness of metal, the earthiness of travertine grounding the space while aluminum details catch and reflect the abundant natural light.

Mario Bellini’s Cab chairs, with their leather shells stretched over steel frames, embody the same tension between softness and structure that defines the entire project. The Frederick Kiesler coffee table and Le Corbusier LC1 sling chair anchor different zones while maintaining visual coherence, each piece selected not for status but for its contribution to the spatial narrative.

The lighting strategy deserves particular attention. Philippe Starck’s desk lamp, Tobia Scarpa’s Abatina table lamp, and Joe Colombo’s globe light for Oluce create a constellation of illumination that moves beyond mere functionality. Each fixture contributes to what lighting designer Hervé Descottes calls atmospheric architecture, where light becomes a material in its own right, shaping not just visibility but mood and meaning.

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