atelier boter uses textile partitions to design the 'fish forest office' in taiwan

in the taiwanese fishing village of qifong, atelier boter has completed a flexible office for a local events company called fish forest. with the use of textile partitions, the 570 ft2 (53 m2) space switches between a private office and a public dining hall. from monday to friday, the curtains designate workspace for the office staff, then, at the weekend, they are pulled open to welcome the community inside. 

images courtesy of atelier boter

a large proportion of qifong is made up of retired elders. to help enliven the aging population, a young local began fish forest  with the idea of organizing local tours and events to attract more visitors to the village.

the new office occupies a street corner, in an existing building that atelier boter has renovated. a concrete platform at the south-facing elevation provides a gathering place for locals to sit down and chat, enlivening the public streetscape. on the other side, a textured ramp leads into the building. 

the interior accommodates an eight-person workspace, a 20-person classroom, and a kitchen. in order to increase the flexibility of the floor plan, atelier boter used fabric curtains as a soft partition, making it quick and easy to turn the workspace and classroom into a 30-person dining hall. a serving hatch was inserted into the partition wall between the kitchen and the open space to increase efficiency while serving food. 

plywood dominates the interior surface finishes to create a homely atmosphere. as the transparent glass windows allow the interior to be clearly visible from the streets, the urban landscape does not stop at the building; it continues inside with a warm, wooden materiality instead of the cold iron outer wall.

the project replaces the typical community center that only opens on specific occasions with one that opens to everyday life. in this way, atelier boter redefines the community center and office typology with a flexible architecture that gives space back to local villagers.

project info:

project name: the fish forest office

type: office

location: qifeng, linbian, taiwan

client: fish forest

architecture firm: atelier boter (chung kai hsieh and wen shan foo)

area: 570 ft2 (53 m2)

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: lynne myers | designboom