Institutional · Staff lounge

Project Common Room

A large, underused hall turned into a common room with zones for dining, conversation, games and screens.

ClientUniversity of Ibadan
SectorStaff lounge
LocationUniversity of Ibadan
WorkCommon room and lounge
StatusCompleted

Where it started

The common room was a big pale-blue hall with a few leather chairs lost in it. The brief was to make it a place people choose to spend time: to eat, meet, watch a match or unwind.

A large volume with tall windows along one side. Without zoning it would feel like a waiting hall, however much furniture went in.

Project Common Room before the redesign, view 1 — Before · 01

Project Common Room before the redesign, view 2 — Before · 02

Decisions with a reason

We broke the room into zones: high tables with orange bar stools by the windows, sofa groups in deep red with blue and gold cushions, and a long dining table in pale oak.
Feature walls in timber-look panels and black fluted strips carry wall-mounted screens, so the TVs sit in a designed frame rather than on bare paint.
Modular ottomans in red and grey can be regrouped for events, and a slatted bar counter anchors the service end of the room.
Pendant lights over the tables and zebra blinds on every window let the space change from bright daytime lounge to evening social room.

Before & after