5 Creative Workspaces in the Western U.S.

Inspiration can be found anywhere and everywhere. But for graphic designers, it helps when it’s right where you need it — at work. That’s why we scoured studios across the country to uncover some of the ones with the most creative interiors for their employees.

Each of these featured firms has a different approach to instilling inspiration into their offices: Some stick with a simple color palette, while others opt for bright, sunny hues. Some invite employees to take their work outside with patio conference rooms, while others bring the outdoors in with towering trees. There are quirky elements from phone booths to Astroturf and plenty of tongue-in-cheek artwork.

But what they all have in common is that this collection illustrates how firms can infuse their surroundings with creativity so that it naturally spills over onto the notebooks and computer screens of the designers at work there. Proof that work doesn’t always have to feel like, well, work.

Check out some of our favorite offices located throughout the Western United States. HOWdesign.com’s Creative Workspaces section is your place to see more roundups and posts about clever interiors in the future, giving you a sneak peek inside some of the most inspirational setups. Check out our roundup of 5 Creative Workspaces in the Eastern U.S., too!

Firm: Traction, San Francisco

Look and feel of the office: Brick and timber meets neo-modern.

Goal of the workspace’s design: “It was essential that we had an open space to provoke collaboration,” says CEO Adam Kleinberg. “Fifteen years ago, when our creative director, Theo Fanning, and I first worked together on a design team at another agency, we sat back-to-back in an open office configuration. We constantly challenged each other and shared ideas. The result was better work. We wanted to ensure that whatever space we were in helped inspire that same dynamic among our people.”

Favorite element of the office: Kleinberg points to the indoor trees. “It feels like you’re working in a forest.”

Workspace’s influence on creativity: “Teams have the freedom to shape their space to their liking. I showed up one morning and one of our art directors, Jon Stepping, had a drop cloth and ladders on the floor and was painting a glazed sunburst on the wall. Our developer team built out a collaboration space in the loft named it Fort Awesome—it’s like a pirate ship up there. We believe everyone at the agency should think of themselves as a creative, and our space helps inspire them to do that.”

Interested in Making Your Workspace More Creative? Get Inspired!

Read this collection of past Workspace columns, which detail unique design studios in HOW magazine.