A space to facilitate good ideas, good communication and good work from the people in it – it’s a goal that most workplaces strive towards, but for Leap Training in Melbourne, it’s one that’s been masterfully achieved in bold and innovative ways.

“The shell was originally a flavour of an 80’s office and thankfully demolished,” says Fraser Paxton, director of the eponymous firm. “Its replacement had to be a bit crazy, a bit wild. The space had to connect teams, to allow them to work together and separately, and to be of a language that would facilitate a generation of good ideas,” he explains.

With a brief described “like a dream”, the project fittingly features a daring mix of colour and geometry. Lime green, sky blue, yellow and white all collide, giving the impression of rainbow-like pathways floating, and dividing, spaces throughout the building.

So how does this influence work in the space? “The owner loves the dynamism in the geometry that weaves and carves through the building, and that everything is bright, a little bit cranked, and nothing is square,” says Paxton. “As a result it’s a fun space to work in.”

In addition to the boldness of the project’s optimistic colour scheme, which remains at risk of seeming overambitious in a corporate environment, its relevance is beautifully tied in to the company narrative. “We used the company colours,” explains Paxton. “As a company they design and build pathways to education. We designed and built for them pathways to the everyday reality of providing that.”

Paxton credits the excellent of builder Carey Howard, the decisiveness of the client, and the purity of a simple idea influencing all aspects of the project as the overwhelming factors for its success.

With this sense of ease in mind, Leap Training is a striking example of a project that excels by knowing exactly what it is supposed to be, and goes about achieving these goals in interesting and innovative ways.

Fraser Paxton Architects
fraserpaxton.com.au

Leap Training
leaptraining.com