Google's office inside the Spruce Goose hangar in Playa Vista

Historic Hangar Becomes History-Making Workplace

Google's office inside the Spruce Goose hangar in Playa Vista

Historic Hangar Becomes History-Making Workplace

Google, Spruce Goose

Workplace

In transforming the heroically sized Spruce Goose hangar into inspiring and intriguing workspace, we sought to create human-scaled experiences in ways that honor the innovations of the past while celebrating Google’s “moonshot ethos.” 

The project demanded a wholly unique design approach and was restored and transformed through the development of a 450,000+ SF, four-level “building-within-a-building” inside the seven-story, 750-foot-long historic wooden structure. Built by Howard Hughes in 1943 for the construction of the Hercules IV airplane (aka the “Spruce Goose”), the hangar now comprises workspace, meeting and event spaces, and employee amenity spaces.

Location

Playa Vista, CA

Square Feet

450,000+

Completion date

2018

Project Component

Architecture services

Interior design and space planning 

Certifications

LEED Gold®

The original glue-laminated arches in Google's Spruce Goose hangar

The original glue-laminated arches soar above the intentionally irregular topography of the interior architecture.

The interplay between the historic building and the new architecture required a delicate balance and careful execution. A highly iterative exploration between design team and client resulted in a dynamic configuration of open floorplates, set back 20 feet from both the interior envelope and the central spine, maintaining the vast longitudinal vistas and ensuring that at every point users can see and sense the original structure. As a result, the high contrast between the repetitious beauty of the historic structure and the dynamic and unpredictable new architecture allows both elements to be understood separately, while they are intrinsically connected visually and experientially.

Exterior of the office in Playa Vista, California
Google employees sitting at the office's cafe

The new architecture is set within the vast, open volumes of the hangar on either side of its fully restored central spine, which divides the building lengthways. The varied shaping of each new floor brings variety to the user experience with double- and triple-height spaces and unique vantage points, while allowing daylight to flow to every level of the building. To ensure the central spine would be a uniting element, it houses collaboration and amenity spaces. Circulation routes are intended to increase interaction, with bridges linking new architecture with the central spine at multiple points on each level, while a boardwalk meanders around the perimeters of the new floorplates on a gentle incline from the ground floor to the third. 

A multi-wall, multi-storey cloudscape by Hueman is interwoven with folds of red fabric, reminiscent of the billowing capes of super heroes.

The interior aesthetic establishes a more mature and sophisticated environment for the brand. New materiality is subtle, allowing the original wooden structure to take a starring role. Texture was chosen over color with a preference for matte finishes: brushed metal wall coverings in some areas, black steel office framework, monochromatic carpets and concrete flooring. Color and pattern are introduced via the diverse furnishings that were hand-selected and in many cases custom-made, complimenting vibrant and diverse art installations.

Hanging artwork by Michael Murphy with suspended spheres that look like a cloud

Comprised of 2,800 individually hung chrome spheres, this perceptual sculpture by Michael Murphy appears to be an amorphous silver cloud until seen from the sole viewpoint where it reveals itself as the “ghost” of the Spruce Goose.

Art programming completed the transformation of the hangar into an exceptional new workplace; curated in partnership with SPMDesign to resonate with the overall design narrative and create a seamless integration of art and architecture, elevating the user experience. Eight artists were commissioned to create large-scale original works inspired by the hangar’s aviation history, the brand‘s innovative ethos, and the multi-faceted spirit of Los Angeles. These extraordinary works are thoughtfully positioned throughout the building, encouraging users to slow down, stay curious, and engage in moments of whimsical escape.

A colorful lounge area

Inspired by the vintage animation Yogi Bear and the Magical Flight of the Spruce Goose, Kim West‘s abstracted forest and drippy, technicolor blooms forms a dreamy homage to what one might have seen from the air that day in November 1947.