Perched high above Quay street this new office space for friends at Black Interiors hums with quiet energy. Cheshire Architects set out to make this space feel as much like an apartment as it does an office; not just a place where work is done, but a place in which working lives are lived with elegance and relish.

Harder working areas-toilets, quiet rooms, kitchens and print bays-are all consolidated into a compact central ‘box’. Around this flow the lighter and more open office, meeting and social areas. With expansive views these spaces bask in the drama of the weather and daylight moving across the city and Waitemata below.

Lighting is never uniform and harsh, but soft and composed. Furnishings are generous and assert comfort, quality, craft and permanence. Each space is constructed from a reduced palette of natural and raw materials, providing a calm backdrop to a busy workplace; a warm and inviting place in which to share a working day, and an evening's entertaining.