Meredith Williams - Principal
Our stakeholders’ prototypes, created in our spring design charrette, included a few interesting pieces. One of those was lots of plants. In selecting images that illustrated how they wanted to feel in the design lab (or school) space, almost all students selected pictures of nature. Green leafy pictures, big mountains, and starry night skies were among the illustrations that spoke to them. When the time came to turn those illustrations into cardboard box room prototypes, one team giggled together as a school board member worked to fashion floppy plants out of green tissue paper. Several teams created hammock-like seating with one group hanging cocoon-style chairs from the ceiling. Initially, the designers thought of a living wall to appeal to the sense of the outdoors. The design constraint of the space, however, was that half the space had two-story ceilings and the windows were only small slats at the top of the high walls. The second half of the space had no windows at all. The extreme lack of natural light would make sustaining plants in the space nearly impossible. This is when we discovered Buzzi Space and their unique solutions for happy and healthy workplaces. Buzzi Space uses their special acoustical material to fashion all types of visually interesting pieces to manage sound in the workplace. Further, the company has increased their scope of work to include lighting and furnishings to make the workplace more functional and fun. We encourage you to check them out here http://buzzi.space. Two pieces from the Buzzi Collection spoke to our designers and their quest for the natural. First, the jungle printed BuzziSkin is a roll of the Buzzi acoustical material printed with a bright jungle theme. The self-adhesive backing made installation a snap as we stuck the material directly to the wall like a sticker. Instantly the long wall of our mezzanine was transformed into a green oasis. And as a bonus, the sound in the space became much clearer and the background noise better managed. Second, the BuzziFalls panels of BuzziFelt cut to look like birch trees would hang below the mezzanine to create a visual and acoustical divider between our campfire space and the large open watering hole areas. The team at BuzziSpace was so generous towards our project they helped make it possible for us to purchase (at a highly discounted rate) these nature-inspired pieces along with a BuzziGrid and BuzziShades in bright orange and red colors to make the space pop. A donor in the community offset the cost to the school, making these innovative acoustic pieces that spoke to the nature our students desired a reality in the space. A hammock on the mezzanine balcony completed the natural look. Swinging gently on the hammock one student said, “It’s like learning in the world!”. Exactly the point!
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AuthorMeredith Williams is the principal at NRHS. A graduate of NRHS and an community member, Mrs. Williams is invested in the success of the NRHS student population. ArchivesCategories |