- Project
Oktra
Bespoke Fine Art Project / Office Design Company / 12,246 sq ft / London EC1
Understanding core values
We were commissioned by Oktra, the UK’s leading office design company, to bring their London headquarters to life through bespoke fine art. We worked closely with their Group Design Operations Director to identify the incentive, purpose and context behind the need for their bespoke art strategy.
Oktra wanted a series of original artworks to visually enhance these areas and reflect their core values as a creative design company. The key priorities were to create high impact upon entry into the building, turn the lobby into a gallery space to improve visitor experience, and bring light and colour to the building’s basement studio.
Oktra have provided workplace services for companies occupying some of London’s most iconic corporate buildings. The brief was to create artwork based on these sites to showcase Oktra’s reach and relationship with the city’s architecture.
Shooting abstraction
We took a series of photos of key buildings in London’s financial district. Simultaneously, we began to experiment with duration, light and abstraction in low light conditions, creating images that would challenge visual perceptions of familiar structures and skylines using slow shutter speeds, while moving the camera to create light trails from the city’s illuminations.
We presented a collection of visualisations to demonstrate how the photographs would sit in their designated spaces. Liaising closely with Oktra’s Art Committee, we took on board the feedback and tested printing, framing and mounting specifications before agreeing a final art proposal.
High-impact statement
In the lobby, the photographs create a powerful, high-impact statement as people transition through the space: elegant, black and white photos of the city’s buildings, combined with the colourful, painterly effects of the abstract images.
The largest pieces float with a 3-D presence, the intentional lack of framing suggests the City continues beyond the art. In the stairwells, the fine art photos illuminate the wall space and visually connect different levels. And in the basement, we installed a large wallpaper wrap which significantly brightens a space lacking in natural light.
In the lobby, the photographs create a powerful, high-impact statement as people transition through the space: elegant, black and white photos of the city’s buildings, combined with the colourful, painterly effects of the abstract images.
The largest pieces float with a 3-D presence, the intentional lack of framing suggests the City continues beyond the art. In the stairwells, the fine art photos illuminate the wall space and visually connect different levels. And in the basement, we installed a large wallpaper wrap which significantly brightens a space lacking in natural light.
"Alex's interpretation of the London cityscape has transformed our reception space into an inspiring sanctuary and brought new life to our workplace. He was a pleasure to work with, being both diligent and creative in equal manner."
Claire Elliott - Oktra - Group Design Operations Director
