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Q&A Wren
Loucks, founder of be-kin
Right Since the pandemic, all be-kin’s residential projects include a workspace of some kind, which can often be adapted into a social or relaxation space
Below Wren Loucks, the company’s founder
T e mental health support I received as a teenager brought me into mental health advocacy. I studied fi ne art and art history at Queen’s University in Canada before completing my postgrad diploma in architectural interior design at the Inchbald School of Design in London. My painting thesis was on the link between memories and the physical reality of architecture, and in design school I became fascinated with phenomenology. T is interest in how spaces connect to our mental well-being and performance has been the heart of my creative process for years. After Inchbald, I moved into high-end residential interior design but my passion for inclusivity led me to work for an access consultancy fi rm, where I advised large corporates like the NHS and global brands on their inclusive design strategy – how we can design better to support diff erences in cognitive, physical and mental abilities. I felt I was stitching my passion for mental health and well-being back into design.
At be-kin, I meld my experience in accessibility and mental health advocacy to design home, commercial and workspace environments that accommodate diff erent sensory profi les to relax and sustain those who live and work there.
All my residential projects have a home offi ce now but they didn’t before. Covid has fundamentally changed how people think about space. My clients want an area at home where they can work and feel productive, but to then be able to adapt this space or close the door, so that they can transition into a social or relaxation space. We need to think about these environments holistically, like our lives. At be-kin we do things diff erently, so we can design holistically. We have a plant whisperer who
Wren Loucks is the founder of be-kin, an interior design agency that focuses on design for well-being. She started be-kin in January 2021, while studying on the MBA at University College London’s School of Management Previously, she was head of design at Motionspot, an accessible design consultancy fi rm, and a designer at Studio Indigo.
chooses plants based not just on the light, air quality and humidity in a space but also the culture and people who use it. A view to the outside is important to allow people to look away from the screen and stretch their eyes – or artwork with perspective if an outside view isn’t possible. I’m also installing rise and fall desks to help people to incorporate movement into their daily lives, and I love working with colour-changing lights to empower clients to create diff erent sensory environments within the same space, depending on their mood.
Accessibility is not just about wheelchair access. While accommodating people with physical impairments is important, we also need to take neurodiversity into account and create spaces which support people diff erences in cognitive and sensory profi les. For example, some environments are a complete sensory overload for many people – the lighting, sounds, smells and colours – and they can’t work like that, it reduces their productivity. When we design spaces, we need to think about creating environments that are adaptable to diff erent needs. Covid and an increase in anxiety makes this ever more important.
Just as we understand people’s personalities in residential projects, we should incorporate a business personality in office design. Designers need to get to get under the skin of the client organisation, how they work and how they would like to work, their brand images – just as we do with resi projects. However, in a commercial space it is essential to design in an adaptable way, to incorporate differerences in cognitive, sensory and physical abilities within the space. Otherwise, the organisation runs the risk of exlusion and also creating enviroments where productivity drops.
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