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"We moved the office to the garden": an oasis in the heart of Los Angeles from SelgasCano studio

27 of January '25
Technical data
NAME: THE SECOND HOME HOLLYWOOD
(HOLLA)
function: OFFICE
location:

HOLLYWOOD, LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, USA

studio: SelgasCano
principal architects: JOSÉ SELGAS, LUCÍA CANO
project team: DIEGO CANO-LASSO, MARÍA LEVENE, INÉS OLAVARRIETA, PAOLO TRINGALI, SIXTO CORDERO, VÍCTOR JIMÉNEZ, SARA OUASS, PILAR CANO-LASSO, CATALINA VÁZQUEZ, JUAN JOSÉ MUÑOZ MUÑOZ, JULIAN OCAMPO, JUAN SAEZ PEDRAJA
principal: SECOND HOME
structural engineer: WALTER P. MOORE
mechanical engineer: HENDERSON ENGINEERS INC
interior designer: SelgasCano
landscape architect: SelgasCano, SECOND HOME
construction engineer: KPFF CONSULTING ENGINEERS

calendar:

  • project
  • construction

  • 2015-2017
  • 2017-2019

area:

  • plots
  • total usable

  • 8 450
  • 6 270 m²

Co-working complex
"The Second Home Hollywood",
design: SelgasCano

[Material prepared from the studio's author description]

In 2019, José Selgas and Lucía Cano, founders of Madrid-based office SelgasCano, designed a co-working complex in East Hollywood, in the heart of Los Angeles. The Second Home Hollywood, also known as "holLA," includes sixty offices surrounded by vegetation, creating an environment for daily work in close contact with nature.

Co-workingowy kompleks „The Second Home Hollywood”, znany również jako „holLA” w Los Angeles - widok z lotu ptaka

Co-working complex "The Second Home Hollywood", also known as "holLA" in Los Angeles - bird's eye view

Photo by Ivan Baan © SelgasCano

heritage preservation:
Integration of a historic building with a modern campus

The project was carried out on a 27,000-square-meter plot of land that previously housed two buildings. One of them, designed in 1964 by Paul Williams - the first African-American architect to work in Los Angeles - has been preserved and serves as the main entrance to the entire campus. The building, in the colonial style characteristic of the city, houses 320 workstations on the first floor and additional offices with 200 workstations on the second floor. Common spaces such as a café, bar, restaurant, conference and event room, lounge areas and open terraces are located around the building.

Co-workingowy kompleks „The Second Home Hollywood”, znany również jako „holLA” w Los Angeles - budynek z 1964 roku zaprojektowany przez Paula Williamsa pełni funkcję głównego wejścia do kampusu

Co-working complex "The Second Home Hollywood", also known as "holLA" in Los Angeles - the 1964 building designed by Paul Williams serves as the main entrance to the campus

Photo by Ivan Baan © SelgasCano

conversion of a parking lot
into garden office space

The second building was demolished and replaced by a parking lot, which was then turned into a garden. It now houses 60 freestanding oval-shaped offices and meeting rooms, surrounded by vegetation. The small buildings, which can accommodate up to 25 people, are arranged in a garden overgrown with lush vegetation.

Co-workingowy kompleks „The Second Home Hollywood”, znany również jako „holLA” w Los Angeles - Niewielkie budynki są porozrzucane w porośniętym bujną roślinnością ogrodzie

Co-working complex "The Second Home Hollywood", also known as "holLA" in Los Angeles - The small buildings are scattered in a garden overgrown with lush vegetation

Photo by Ivan Baan © SelgasCano

The offices are "pots" that are surrounded by more than 10,000 plants and trees, among which butterflies, ants, bees, squirrels and people live. Wooden and concrete paths crisscross the garden, leading through the vegetation on either side, like a walk among flowers that bloom all year round

- emphasize the architects.

Co-workingowy kompleks „The Second Home Hollywood”, znany również jako „holLA” w Los Angeles - przez przezroczyste, zakrzywione ściany roztacza się panoramiczny widok na otaczającą roślinność

Co-working complex "The Second Home Hollywood", also known as "holLA" in Los Angeles - through the transparent curved walls there is a panoramic view of the surrounding vegetation

Photo by Ivan Baan © SelgasCano

Integration with nature: oval buildings
and panoramic views

The oval buildings all have flat, yellow roofs with irregular shapes meant to evoke lily leaves floating on water. Through the transparent curved walls there is a panoramic view of the surrounding vegetation, which introduces an atmosphere of closeness to nature. The buildings have been partially built into the site, which integrates them into the landscape.

Co-workingowy kompleks „The Second Home Hollywood”, znany również jako „holLA” w Los Angeles - przekroje

Co-working complex "The Second Home Hollywood," also known as "holLA" in Los Angeles - cross sections

© SelgasCano

In this project, the interior spaces recede into the background and the focus is on the exterior environment - a perfect reflection of the Los Angeles lifestyle. Instead of moving the garden to the office, we moved the office to the garden

- the designers add.

Co-workingowy kompleks „The Second Home Hollywood”, znany również jako „holLA” w Los Angeles

Co-working complex "The Second Home Hollywood," also known as "holLA" in Los Angeles

Photo by Ivan Baan © SelgasCano

green transformation

Vegetation lowers the ambient temperature, providing shade, while the transparent facade reduces the need for artificial lighting and has three opening windows for natural cross ventilation. Two tanks with a total capacity of 37,000 gallons have been installed on the site to collect rainwater used to irrigate the plants.

Co-workingowy kompleks „The Second Home Hollywood”, znany również jako „holLA” w Los Angeles

Co-working complex "The Second Home Hollywood," also known as "holLA" in Los Angeles

Photo by Ivan Baan © SelgasCano

The Second Home Hollywood project is an innovative approach to coworking space that combines elements of office and home atmosphere. Its goal was to create a work environment that eliminates the drawbacks of traditional offices while avoiding the isolation characteristic of working at home. This concept, which has been implemented in various locations around the world, has been fully realized at Second Home Hollywood, where the functionality, flexibility of the space and proper organization enable effective collaboration in small and medium-sized groups, supporting creativity and productivity.

Elaborated: Anastazja Dżupina

Illustrations provided courtesy of SelgasCano studio.

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