— Press release announcement —

The Al Baraka Banking Group Headquarters – one of the latest projects developed by Fantoni in the Middle East, designed by studio EMGA – is located in Bahrain Bay, Manama. Commissioned by the Al Baraka Banking Group, the imposing building comprises two blocks, linked together by a bridge passing over a “plaza”, a public meeting point.

For the design of this building studio EMGA drew inspiration from the geometries of Islamic patterns, deconstructed and enlarged so as to form the outer skin and structure of the building.

The diagonals and horizontal levels give the elevations of the building a unique visual character, and in addition to their aesthetic role, they also form the backbone of the structure itself. The structural integrity of the building lies within these components, reinforcing the concept of a building that wears its skin on the outside and its skeleton on the inside. The lines create a strong personality that captivates passers-by, but also guarantees a setting that is both prestigious and comfortable for those visiting or working inside it; the geometric lines also burst forth in the interiors, in the patterns of the glass, the receptions, the ceilings, the carpets and the multi-purpose auditorium. Fantoni chose to echo these designs in the custom-made storage furniture, a revisitation of a collection featuring distinctive milled patterns on the MDF doors.

The interior design, developed together with the Fantoni Research Centre, ticked all the required boxes for a working space that would be stimulating, modern, dynamic and contemporary. The green areas challenge the monotony of a classic bank interior, bringing the outside in, and creating a dialogue between the blue of the ocean and the warm colors of the interiors.

The Fantoni glass partitions enhance the privacy of the executive floors, while maintaining a sense of openness and brightness. The spaces are never divided at right-angles, instead featuring a range of variations and angles that present a veritable challenge for the design of the partitions. Here the details grow even more elegant, privacy more defined, the colors richer, the materials more luxurious, and selected from among the world’s most prestigious producers.

This was a great challenge for Fantoni, a complete project involving the integrated development of the furniture, walls – both in glass and melamine – and the sound absorbent systems. Undoubtedly the fact that the group includes a company specializing in the production of laminates and melamine papers was an advantage, enabling Fantoni to respond to the requirements for a uniform finish in the materials supplied, and thus meeting the demands of both the client and the architect. The company’s collaboration with studio EMGA is a long-standing one, making for great synergy and unity of purpose.

The Fantoni Group (founded by Achille Fantoni in 1882) is a leader firm in the production of office furniture, partition and storage walls, MDF and chipboard panels, melamine flooring and sound-absorbent panels.

To know more about Fantoni group click here.