a person walks down a white staircase into an office common area

February 21, 2024

Dynamic Staircases Encourage Movement in This Tech Office

2023 Best of Year Winner for Commercial Staircase

“Movement” was the design concept for this 16-floor tech workspace in Cambridge, Massachusetts, a notion exemplified via a series of dynamic feature staircases that encourage physicality and interaction while expressing and celebrating the flow of foot traffic between levels. Designed by Utile and Merge Architects, connecting three of the floors is an asymmetrically stacked ribbon of steel, its ash balustrade morphing into banquette seating at the base. The swooping form exerts a gravitational pull, inviting staffers to look over and enjoy views of the activity. Another stair with a geometric switchback profile makes a statement in bold blue, its translucent Panelite sidewall filtering the motion of ascent and descent through to the opposite side.

See Interior Design’s Best of Year Winners and Honorees

Explore must-see projects and innovative products that took home high honors.

2023 WINNERS

a person walks down a staircase with sky blue walls

a black staircase near illuminated wall panels

PROJECT TEAM

UTILE: MIMI LOVE; CHANTEL KOCHER; CLAUDIA PORRAS; JACK CORRIVEAU; PETRA JAROLIMOVA.

MERGE ARCHITECTS: ELIZABETH WHITAKER; DIANA TOMOVA; CHRIS JOHNSON.

Projects
This Award-Winning Beach House Surprises in More Ways Than One
Life’s a beach at the 2023 Interior Design Best of Year Awards winner for Large Beach House by Steven Harris Architects and Rees Roberts & Partners.
Projects
Immersive to the Max: Inside a Whimsical Sales Gallery in Hong Kong
Take a closer look at the 2023 Interior Design Best of Year Awards winner for Residential Sales Center, Novo Land Sales Gallery by One Plus Partnership.
Projects
Trippy Geometric Forms Shape This Award-Winning Bar Design
Explore the ethereal hues in Le Bar, a 2,000-square-foot watering hole in Nanchang, China, by Matrix Design, which took home a Best of Year Award.