U+B Architecture Designs Award-Winning Space on a Modest Budget
Creates soft touches and re-branding for Minneapolis advertising firm

by Cynthia Young
Contributing Editor

How do you . . . create a light-filled office space on a small budget that brands a small, nationally known advertising agency?

Summary: When Minneapolis advertising firm Kruskopf Coontz was looking for new office space, Principal Sue Kruskopf wanted the space to convey a softer image than the heavy-timbered, exposed-beam, masculine look of some ad agencies. Located in the Flour Exchange Building in the vibrant riverside area, Kruskopf collaborated with Minneapolis-based U+B Architecture & Design to create a modern, open, simple space that was filled with natural light and infused with soft blues, greens, and pale yellows that give it a leading-edge, yet playful feeling.

“When I found the space, it had really good bones and super high ceilings,” says Sue Kruskopf, of the J-shaped, 5,500-square-foot office. “It was wide open, had tons of natural light, and felt very collaborative too. The biggest issue was the cost. We wanted to do it in a really great way and as efficiently as possible.”

U+B Architecture, led by Principals Mark Burgess, AIA, and Paul Udris, AIA, and Project Manager Eric Ludwig, created a cohesive design that incorporated a variety of work environments, including open and closed offices, creative work areas, lounges, and a presentation room. The office also has large exterior windows that infuse the space throughout with natural light.

Light as a metaphor
“The light and transparency are really important from a work environment standpoint, but also are a metaphor for how you move through the space,” says Ludwig. “The space is a reflection of the values of the client. Sue didn’t want it to be ostentatious; she wanted it to be feminine, have clean lines, and to work well.”

The space, indeed, works well. The agency, with its staff of 20, had different kinds of office spaces that required different levels of privacy, notes Ludwig. “On the first level is the reception desk, then secondly, there are open work stations that line the perimeter wall, with a third kind of space for private offices. The fourth kind of space is the work room, which has counters all around it, where people work openly and collaboratively together at the center table.”

To create a theme that runs through the entire project, the architects created translucent walls using semi-opaque resin panels manufactured by 3form, a material that resembles sharkskin. The iridescent surface of the milky white panels bounces light across the space. The panels serve as sliding partitions, privacy walls between offices, kitchen cabinets, sidelights for principals’ offices, and for the entrance reception desk. As light hits the panels, they glimmer and change colors from soft turquoises and greens to pinks and yellows. As the light changes across their surface it evokes a playful feeling.

“This is all about transparency, about how light moves through the space. It is also a metaphor for the advertising agency,” says Ludwig. “Clients walking through the space can see how the work gets done. You get the sense that it is an extension of their work philosophy, which is open and collaborative. They have privacy when they need it, but the design also allows light to pass through.”

Privacy a concern
The panels provide different levels of privacy. The transparent material forms entire walls from the floor to the ceiling and semi-enclosed offices with sliding panels so offices can be closed off or left more open. Five-foot-high panels enclose work stations, so when staffers sit they feel enclosed, yet when they stand they can see across the room.

When clients visit, to reach the conference room, they walk through the space and past a row of work stations to the presentation room at the end of the office. “We liked what the office presented in terms of the procession through the space,” notes Burgess. “We purposely chose to put the pitch room at the end of the office. We wanted to bring the clients through the space to show the vitality of the work process. The space lent itself to that.”

“Modern and fresh”
Kruskopf and the design team worked well together from the start. “When we got together, they completely ‘got it,’” says Kruskopf, who founded the agency 10 years ago and who started college majoring in architecture. Kruskopf even added a chandelier in the reception space for a feminine touch. “It adds a touch of warmth and surprise. It feels modern and fresh, and that describes our company. You have to stand for the kind of work you do and reflect it in your space.”

U+B also worked closely with the agency and its graphic designer to convey the firm’s new brand in three dimensions as it changed its name to Kruskopf Coontz. The firm took the color palette from the firm’s marketing materials. “We worked closely with the graphic designer to make sure the architectural space was an extension of their brand identity,” Burgess said.

The architects also designed the space within the client’s budget of $65 per square foot. For impact, U+B coupled the higher-priced panel material and higher-end furniture pieces with moderately priced Ikea furniture.

“The space is serious, but it is also fun,” concludes Ludwig.