Interior concept and layout of meeting squares in The Hague offices I Gispen

Gispen government project interior view of FMHaaglanden Beatrixpark in The Hague CTH10

In a short period of time, realize more opportunities for hybrid consultation and collaboration in the offices in The Hague. ICT facilities included. 'We want to renovate as little as possible and give up as few desk workplaces as possible. Make sure you have a cool whole that appeals. The corners of the mouth can be raised, so surprise us!' FMHaaglanden gave this assignment to Gispen. Within a year, we created three inspiring, multifunctional meeting squares in three office buildings in The Hague. Each with a unique interior concept.

Making expensive square meters even more valuable

Client Marc Verweij, department manager at FMHaaglanden: 'The original question arose after corona. How do we set up our offices for as much hybrid working as possible, without sacrificing desk workplaces? You tend to look for the solution in the departments, but don't forget the central spaces with many physical square meters. These are often used one-dimensionally; Think of a staff restaurant where people only have lunch. In the heart of The Hague, these are very expensive square meters. We were looking for a way to quickly make these types of spaces more multifunctional and asked Gispen to think creatively with us.' This resulted in multifunctional meeting squares for three central government locations in The Hague: Beatrixpark, Turfmarkt and De Resident – an executive organisation, core department and a mix of both. Gispen took care of three unique interior designs, the complete interior design and the project management.

Three unique styles

Marc: 'To speed things up, we started horizontally, so we designed and immediately tested against safety and other standards.' Two teams of two designers got to work. Interior architect Claartje ten Have: 'Separately, we developed various interior concepts and then pitched them. That resulted in two completely unique styles.' FMHaaglanden embraced both concepts. Claartje: 'At the Beatrixpark location, in the former staff restaurant, they opted for a central green street with a variety of meeting places on both sides. Lunch can still be had here. At the Turfmarkt location, also in a former staff restaurant, an organic landscape has been created full of lunch and meeting places – the working title was 'Strolling in the park'. At the De Resident location, formerly a library, the meeting area runs over two internally connected floors and a combination of both concepts has been chosen.'

A lot of customization, including reuse

For the design of the squares, Gispen put together a unique mix of products. From the Gispen MultiLounge program for an active seat during lunch to Gispen TMNL Agile scrum tables for both seated and standing meetings. TOOaPICNIC has been used in many places: small work and meeting places in train seats. Zwartwoud provided custom tree tables: wooden worktops around a large pot with a tree in it, including connection points for laptops. And those corners of the mouth up? This is ensured by various playful elements, such as the Gispen Low Res Elephant (lamp and stool in one), Moooi Pig side tables and monkeys lying around that form a lamp. Rob Lotstra, interior architect at Gispen: 'We opted for new, circularly designed furniture. But we also looked at where reuse was possible. For example, a large sofa on the Turfmarkt has been reupholstered and all Fritz Hansen Ant chairs have been reused by spraying them ochre yellow and providing them with upholstery.'

Biophilic design

Special attention was paid to biophilic design. In other words: promoting physical and mental well-being in spaces by creating a link between nature and the interior. There is plenty of greenery to be seen on the meeting squares, you can hear soft bird sounds and many natural materials have been used. Rob: 'Friendly shapes provide the meandering, organic feeling of Turfmarkt but also at De Resident. As if you are walking through a park with vistas. As far as I'm concerned, bringing the outside in has worked well at all three locations. We have worked a lot on this, including with the interior builder and green supplier.'

How do you like it?

Marc: 'That's always the nicest question; How do users react? Beforehand, we asked what people wanted. Apparently we have met this well: the user rating of all three squares has been nicely increased. On average a good 8 at the moment. You can see that immediately in the line-up. I think Beatrixpark has undergone the biggest metamorphosis. When I walk around there, I see all forms of work. People read, discuss, come and see for a while. I like to spend time there myself. With this process, together with Gispen, we have really set the bar for subsequent meeting squares.'

Photography: Claartje ten Have

Rob Lotstra, interior architect at Gispen

A word from the specialist

'How can we make better use of our buildings? Based on that question, we worked with two teams of designers to draw up interior concepts for three meeting squares. The meandering park landscape was my own. Biggest design challenge: creating a lot of variation in seating and meeting areas and still delivering one image. I think we have absolutely succeeded in that. In a pleasant, professional collaboration with FMHaaglanden, three inspiring and inclusive squares have been created where people can work together and consult in all kinds of ways.'

'Gispen guided us in a very positive and solution-oriented way. Flexible, persistent and mature.'

Marc Verweij Department manager at FMHaaglanden

Marc Verweij, Department Manager at FMHaaglanden

The client's thoughts

'Within a year, we realized three new meeting squares; from first sketches to completion. We challenged Gispen to surprise us and think beyond what is usual. We succeeded, despite certain limitations in the buildings and sometimes changing wishes on our part. The Gispen team always thought along enthusiastically. I have a lot of respect for how Gispen has guided us in a positive and solution-oriented way. Flexible, persistent and mature.'