Linework Architecture: The WORK_shed began as an e-mail from a former clients with the subject, “Tiny Project?” With a toddler in hand, a baby on the way, and a compact 1919 vintage bungalow running tight on space, our work-from-home clients needed a serious upgrade to their existing office setup. Until now, they had been remote co-working from a cramped and dark, 110-square-foot backyard shed. The request was for two autonomous, acoustically separated workspaces that would uplift the everyday experience and place specific attention on good, even light for frequent video calls.
Our clients wanted to build it themselves with the help of a retired family member, it needed to be inexpensive, and could we locate it on the existing shed platform in a corner of the property, shoehorned between an existing heritage tree and privacy fence. The design team took the tall order somewhat literally.
Split in half, the shed platform’s footprint of 55 square feet for each office was too tight. However, the key to making it all work was a pair of cantilevered saddlebags deep and wide enough to create a full-depth desk area while also allowing space for circulation and a separate sitting area. The walls were re-framed to the height limit, cladding the section above the privacy fence entirely in polycarbonate to provide dramatic, filtered light and abstracted views into the adjacent heritage tree.
The resulting space is uniquely private—acoustically and visually—yet feels intrinsically connected to the landscape and changes of the day and season. And, of course, is great for video calls. By utilizing the existing shed platform to provide two vibrant new workspaces the design approach eliminated the need for a more carbon intensive and costly full house renovation/addition while keeping the character and charm of the existing house intact. The design preserves the existing heritage tree root system, and the clerestory largely eliminates the need for artificial light during working hours.
