“Design is central to their identity, whether it’s for clients or their own environment,” explains Martin Musiatowicz, director of Kart Projects. “They [Mass Studio] wanted an that felt personal, warm and inviting – something that could persuade people back post-COVID without it feeling like a requirement.” The result sees Studio Mass HQ emerge as a workspace that intentionally blurs domesticity with the industrial heritage of the building, and where flexibility is fused with a sense of permanence.
Housed within an old grain store build in the 1990s, the existing space was inherited as a fragmented and tired series of parts. Kart Projects began by stripping the interior back to its industrial shell as a cleared base to introduce elements that had purpose. “It was important to reveal the history of the space,” says Musiatowicz. “We saw potential in the open, light-filled volume and wanted to let that breathe while inserting elements that would define specific functions.”
The intervention comprises two custom-designed volumes: a meeting room inspired by the sleek elegance of an aluminium-clad MacBook and a deep green core housing the kitchen, bathrooms and storage. These new elements are compact and dense, leaving much of the open-plan space untouched to accommodate fluid ways of working. “It’s a balance between maintaining the openness of the warehouse and creating moments of intimacy and enclosure,” he adds. “Each volume has its own mood, its own identity, and together they create a layered experience.”
In accommodating the broad-ranging brief required by Studio Mass, the space had to be inherently flexible to take on differing guises – from the need to run collaborative workshops to everyday focused and shared tasks as well as the ability to create spaces that facilitated individual deep work. It was important that the space retained the same feeling, no matter which mode of use it was in. “Flexibility was key,” Musiatowicz explains. “The space isn’t huge, so every element needed to do double duty. It’s about creating opportunities for different ways of working without compromising the flow of the space.”
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The meeting room, complete with sliding wall, was designed to expand into the main space when needed for specific events, while more intimate spaces such as the library and kitchen could also be closed off to create zones appropriate to their scale and use. Beyond its functionality, Studio Mass HQ reflects the studio’s ambition to engage with the broader design community. “The space is not just for work—it’s a venue for dialogue, workshops and cultural programming,” says Musiatowicz. “It’s an embodiment of who they are and what they stand for.”
As a core part of how Kart Projects approach each of their projects, it was important that local design and fabrication was prioritised. Featuring custom joinery throughout that was designed as a unique response to both place and use, the resulting spaces come together as a celebration of an Australian crafted and localised approach. “The idea wasn’t to import a vision, but to create something that felt grounded within local design culture,” Musiatowicz reflects.
With Studio Mass HQ, Kart Projects wanted to create a workspace that surpassed pure utility; instead, it became a tactile, immersive expression of identity. It’s a reminder that design isn’t just about what we do – it’s about how we live, work and connect.
Kart Projects
Photography
Pier Carthew
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