Smithson Tower

Designed by preeminent architects Alison and Peter Smithson, the Smithson Tower was built in the early 1960s as headquarters for The Economist news magazine in the heart of Mayfair, London. The Tower is just one part of a Grade II* Listed mixed-use development that is considered a post-war Brutalist masterpiece. Following the departure of The Economist in 2016, we were tasked with designing a new HQ for a financial client on the 11th floor.

Based on the client’s desire for an updated open plan office space balanced with appreciation of the historic layout, we aimed to maintain both internal openness and dynamic views to the surrounding city, whilst retaining and celebrating the original octagonal layout.

To build on the historical design use of diagonals, the studio split the space into eight zones defined by the existing structural grid. Each zone caters to different ways of working to include both formal and informal work spaces, ensuring a ‘home-away-from-home’ environment for guests and staff. The completed project was successfully transformed from cellular to collaborative.