Jewel Beyond Price

An office can be a thing of pure and unadulterated beauty. No doubt people will scoff at me for saying this, but I stand by it. Why? I can’t quite put it into words that do it justice, but it’s something to do with the creation of seamless systems that simply can’t occur in any sphere of life other than the workplace. Furthermore, it’s about the distillation of these into spatial precepts that translate across all applications. That, to me, is the very definition of beauty, and offices encapsulate it like nothing else.

Of course, I’m talking about offices in an idealised sense. There are plenty of examples of terrible office design within Melbourne – more than enough to go around, if you ask me. That’s why it we as a society to hold up the very best offices as examples of what’s possible. In light of that, I’ve made it one of my missions in this life to help make this understood by the wider population.

How am I doing this? First of all, I’m spreading the word, letting everyone I know in on my passion for beautiful offices. Secondly, I’m connecting people to my personally vetted list of office fitout services. Melbourne has plenty of companies who can do the job, but my vision goes beyond the good and into the realm of greatness, and I believe we must all encourage our peers to strive for that across the board. Finally, I’m turning a critical eye to workspaces across Melbourne and offering my personal feedback on a pro bono basis.

So far, the reception to my efforts has been a mixed bag. I’ve had some support, mostly from those with an existing eye for design, although it’s been suggested that I ‘tone down’ my approach and cease offering unsolicited criticism. I understand where this response is coming from, but I maintain that the world needs people willing to step forward to front lines and defend this undervalued pearl of human achievement – whatever the cost.