Amenta Emma Architects have designed the offices for insurance company Phoenix / Nassau Reinsurance, located in Hartford, Connecticut.

The iconic, modernist “Boat Building” in downtown Hartford, designed by Max Abramovitz in 1963, still attracts admiration for its unique two-sided shape and use of glazing. Yet inside, age and various uses had taken its toll. When the Phoenix Companies, Inc. (1851) recently was acquired by Nassau Reinsurance Company, it provided an opportunity to reclaim, reimagine, and reorganize interior space. The inaugural project was a redesign of the executive level. While it was challenging to work with the existing linear ceiling and standard light layout, as well as deal with the confines of a two-sided building, designers were successful creating an open office work environment for all top executives and producers. Utilizing trading desks, and a series of small and large collaborative spaces, including huddle spaces, maximized flexibility was achieved in a corporate setting. The program defines work station areas, collaborative spaces and an executive suite, differentiating between social and work nodes. A conference room perches at the top of a winding stair. Transitional frames of polished black lacquer distinguish the main conference room, kitchen, private break-out rooms, establishing a visitor zone, while also contributing to way-finding. A monochromatic color scheme forces the eye toward spectacular cityscape views. Blues and blacks reinforce the message that this is a serious corporate environment.

Designer: Amenta Emma Architects

Photography: Robert Benson

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